- Man United host Brentford in a crucial Premier League match at Old Trafford
- Ferguson will be absent for the first game since his contract was terminated
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Sir Alex Ferguson will miss Manchester United’s match against Brentford on Saturday, the club’s first match since his ambassador contract was terminated.
Man United’s minority owners Ineos and Sir Jim Ratcliffe made the decision to terminate Ferguson’s £2m-a-year contract as part of cost-cutting measures.
The 82-year-old coach has a previous commitment that will lead him to be absent from Old Trafford on Saturday.
It remains to be seen how often he returns to the club where he became the greatest manager in United’s history, delivering 38 trophies in 26 years.
Mail Sport reported this week that Ferguson and other members of the club’s board have also been told to stay away from the dressing room, breaking with tradition.
Sir Alex Ferguson will miss Manchester United’s Premier League match against Brentford on Saturday
The match at Old Trafford is the first since Sir Jim Ratcliffe (right) ended an ambassadorship deal.
Erik ten Hag admits decision to terminate Ferguson’s contract will have big impact on club
Man United manager Erik ten Hag praised Ferguson’s impact when asked about the legendary manager on Friday.
“Of course this has an impact on us,” Ten Hag said. ‘Sir Alex is Man United. He built United to where the club is now and that impacts us.
But on the other hand, we know and Sir Alex also knows that that’s what he wants. He wants to see a winning Manchester United and I’m sure he will always be available to give me advice. We will definitely need it in the short term, as we have in the last two and a half years that I have been here.
“One thing is for sure: there is hardly any club in the world where expectations are as high as those of Man United. This is set in the Sir Alex era, and the rest of us who come after have to deal with this.” .
The decision to end Ferguson’s lucrative ambassadorial role has divided opinion.
In his Mail Sport column on Friday, Graeme Souness suggested the decision was a “shameful move” and highlighted that Man United’s minority owners Ineos “don’t understand how football really works”.
Former United striker Eric Cantona openly criticized the move this week.
Cantona said: “Sir Alex Ferguson should be able to do whatever he wants at the club until the day he dies.”
‘What a lack of respect. It’s totally scandalous. Sir Alex Ferguson will be my boss forever! And I throw them all in a big bag of shit!’
It remains to be seen how often Ferguson will return to the club where he became United’s greatest ever manager.
Man United’s match with Brentford could be key for under-pressure manager Ten Hag
Sources insist the meeting was entirely amicable and that Ferguson, who will retain his title as non-executive director, remains a close friend of the club who will always be welcome at Old Trafford.
Over the past 11 and a half years, Ferguson’s duties have included representing United around the world, as well as providing matchday hospitality to the club’s partners and sponsors at Old Trafford, and appearing in promotional videos.
The Scot has been a regular spectator at home and away matches, apart from the period after he suffered a life-threatening brain haemorrhage in 2018 and following the death of his wife, Lady Cathy, a year ago.
He has often been seen sitting next to Ratcliffe in the directors’ box and chatting to the Ineos owner since he paid £1.3bn to acquire 27.7 per cent of the club.
Man United face a crucial match with Brentford on Saturday as doubts persist over Ten Hag’s future.
The Red Devils have suffered their worst start to a season in the Premier League with eight points from their first seven games of the campaign.
