Sir Alex Ferguson banned Man Utd youngsters from driving one particular brand of car

Sir Alex Ferguson once banned Manchester United's young stars from driving one particular type of car despite the club agreeing a huge sponsorship deal.

Ferguson is one of the greatest football managers in history, and part of his success came down to his ability to keep his players in check.

The Scottish coach was an infamous micro-manager, keen to control as many aspects of his players' lives as possible in order to keep them focused on their day jobs.

For example, he once banned younger members of his United squad from wearing coloured boots, forcing them to wear only black.

Then, in 2012, he forbid youngsters at the club from driving flashy sports cards despite United agreeing a multi-million-pound sponsorship deal with Chevrolet.

United agreed a huge deal with the American car manufacturer in 2012, before the bran became the club's shirt sponsor in 2014.

As part of the agreement, Chevrolet offered United players a choice of luxury car, including the manufacturer's iconic Corvette.

The price for a Corvette ranges from £80,000 to as much as £90,000 depending on the model.

A Man United spokesperson confirmed: "As with most automotive partnerships, Chevrolet will be offering players a car. The model will be dependent on their time at the club and driving experience."

Gary Neville speaks with Sir Alex Ferguson. Image: Getty

However, Ferguson intervened to ban players under the age of 23 from ordering a vehicle from Chevrolet regardless of their standing in the team.

It meant that Danny Welbeck, Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Rafael da Silva were banned from driving anything not approved by the Scot, despite being Premier League regulars.

Ferguson's order was an example of his no-nonsense and man-manager style as he made sure his young talents didn't get too big for their boots.

In a interview with talkSPORT, United legend Wayne Rooney explained why his old boss made young players drive modest cars.

"When Alex Ferguson was there, if you were under 25 then you couldn’t have a sports car," he said.

"It is little things like that to have that discipline which the older players can help with."