Sir Alex Ferguson Told Man Utd Star to ‘Sell His House and Get Rid of Girlfriend’
A former Manchester United star once revealed that Sir Alex Ferguson made him live separately from his girlfriend after a poor spell of form.
Ferguson led United to 13 Premier League titles and two UEFA Champions League crowns during his 26-year reign as head coach at Old Trafford.
Unlike today’s modern way of coaching, Ferguson would often let his assistants take training while he watched from inside Carrington.
However, the Scot was revered by most of his players and opponents, and when needed, would tell even the best players exactly what he thought of them.
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United legends, Roy Keane, David Beckham, and Paul Scholes all caught the brunt of Ferguson’s fury during their respective careers, but it was another Premier League winner who was effectively forced to move house under Ferguson’s orders.
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Former left-winger Lee Sharpe made 261 appearances for the Red Devils between 1988 and 1996, a period in which he helped the side win three Premier League titles and two FA Cup crowns.
And despite having several medals to show for his efforts at Old Trafford, Sharpe’s career was overshadowed by several injuries and losses of form, which stagnated his progress, whereas several of his peers from the 1990s, such as Ryan Giggs and Beckham, went on to become United icons.
But Ferguson supposedly pulled out all the stops to maximise Sharpe’s talent and even threatened to move Sharpe back into digs if his form suffered after moving in with his girlfriend.
Speaking on Sacked in the Morning in April 2024, Sharpe said: "From top to bottom, he ran the club. He said he'd allow it [moving in with his girlfriend] and asked if we were getting married. We'd been going out since I was 12, and that was the plan.
“But he said if my form suffered, I'd be going to go back into digs. I was like, 'yeah, yeah, that's not a problem'.
"And then my form started to suffer. At Anfield, of all places, he decided to try to change our formation to match up with Liverpool and play three at the back and five in midfield.
"Me and Ryan Giggs were running around in circles not knowing who to mark. The game was passing us by. At half-time, he said, in not so many words, 'you are absolutely useless'.
"'Tomorrow, you're going to sell your house, sell your dog, sell your car. You send your girlfriend back to Birmingham, you're back in digs'.”
He added: “Then every week he would come up to me in training and ask, 'Are you married yet?' I'm like, married? You sent my girlfriend home!"
Sharpe, who earned eight England caps, left United for Leeds in 1996 before later presenting Sampdoria, Bradford, Portsmouth, Exeter, Grindavík, and Garforth before calling time on his career in 2004.
Topics: Sir Alex Ferguson, Premier League, Football, Roy Keane, David Beckham, Man Utd
Luke Davies