Iconic former manager Sir Alex Ferguson made a tactical decision that one Manchester United legend “hated” after a change in his role at Old Trafford.
Sir Alex Ferguson bowed out of Old Trafford in 2013 for the final time as a manager after Manchester United’s last Premier League title win.
The 82-year-old Scotsman enjoyed remarkable success at the Red Devils, including lifting 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.
Ferguson left behind a long-lasting legacy at United – and on English football as a whole – with the Scot considered one of the best managers of all time.
The legendary former United manager was widely admired for how he would revamp his squads during his incredible 26-year reign at Old Trafford.
Ferguson wasn’t afraid to cut players who stepped out of line and reinvent his squads amid his rivalries with the likes of Arsenal legend Arsene Wenger.
The United legend was known for wanting the best in class at United and managed several world-class players, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.
However, Ferguson’s decision to alter one United legend’s position didn’t sit well and made the former player struggle to enjoy football at that time.
Ferguson change that Man Utd legend ‘hated’
Sir Alex Ferguson was forced to allow Cristiano Ronaldo to leave Old Trafford after the Manchester United legend wanted to sign for Real Madrid.
Ronaldo left the Red Devils for the first time in 2009 and completed a then-world-record move to Los Blancos for an £80m fee.
Wayne Rooney revealed that his former United teammate’s departure to Real Madrid led to him undergoing a position change under Ferguson.
The 38-year-old former United and England striker was forced to play in a No 9 role rather than playing in a two-man attack or behind the main forward option.
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, Rooney admitted that he felt that Ferguson’s decision circumvented his playing style at United.
“I’d played a lot as a No 10 and then when I went as a No 9, I remember Fergie saying to me, ‘Just stay in the box, stay away,’ and I really struggled with it,” he said on The Overlap.
“To have that patience to just stay up front. I was itching to come back and get on the ball.
“I was like, ‘I need to play,’ but then obviously I done it and that was my best goalscoring year but I actually didn’t enjoy the game.”
Rooney added: “I hated it. I didn’t enjoy the game.”
Rooney and Ferguson’s relationship at Man Utd
Rooney enjoyed incredible success at United under Ferguson and continued to play at Old Trafford long after the Scotsman’s retirement from football management.
However, the former United and England captain’s relationship with Ferguson was far from perfect and it changed during his time at the club.
Rooney believed that his relationship with Ferguson was never the same after he asked to leave the Premier League club in 2010.
“When I put the transfer request in [to leave Manchester United], I was still speaking to David Gill on where the club was going, how they were going to move forward,” he said on an episode of Stick to Football in February.
“Being a manager now myself, and looking back, it was the wrong thing to do probably. At the time, I felt like it was the right thing to do to really get assurances for my own career.
“Once David [Gill] had explained what the club are doing, I said, ‘Fine – that’s all the manager had to say. That’s all the club had to tell me,’ and then I signed the new deal.
“In terms of the relationship with the manager [Sir Alex Ferguson], of course it was never the same. After that, the big thing that probably hurt him was they had just sold Carlos Tevez, they had just sold Cristiano Ronaldo and probably couldn’t afford to let me go.”