Sir Alex Ferguson's reaction to having his Man Utd contract brutally axed by INEOS revealed by club 'source'

Sir Alex Ferguson’s multi-million-pound ambassadorial contract with Manchester United has come to an end as INEOS continue to make 'transformative cost-savings and organisational changes'.

Last month, United's chief executive officer Omar Berrada released a statement to accompany the club's full-year financial results, where he discussed becoming more “financially sustainable” after the club posted a loss of £113.2 million.

INEOS have been ruthless with their approach to restructure. Earlier this year, they cut 250 jobs this summer as part of a determination to slash costs and scrap some "non-essential" activities.

Sir Dave Brailsford, who has played a key role in football operations at United since the INEOS takeover, has led a wide-ranging review of club operations,

And on Tuesday, it emerged that the part-owners have ended a multi-million pound annual commitment to the most successful manager in their history, Sir Alex Ferguson.

That's according to a report from The Athletic, who suggest a face-to-face meeting between United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ferguson took place at Old Trafford.

Here, Ratcliffe told Ferguson that the club are keen on reducing costs and are no longer prepared to sustain his payments.

It is said the matter between the previously mentioned was dealt with 'amicably' and Ferguson, 82, will remain in a non-executive director role at the Premier League club.

In terms of how much United were paying the Scot, the only official description of his services as a global ambassador can be seen in their 2014 accounts under the related party transactions section. He received £2.16 million for his services.

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Ferguson, of course, is the most successful manager in the club's history.

During his 26-year reign at United, he won 38 major trophies, which included two European cups, 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups, four League Cups and the European Cup Winners' Cup.

Last month, Ferguson admitted that he sometimes still misses the job, 11 years after announcing his retirement.

"Yeah, I miss it sometimes," he told the BBC. "I think the first year after retirement, I went to the European final and I said to [his late wife] Cathy: 'This is what I miss -- big games, the European games.'

"So then I went to most of the European finals because I find something I can relate to, something I would liked to have done every day. Because these are the big events that United should always be involved in."