‘There were TEARS in the dressing room’: Ashley Young reveals how Sir Alex Ferguson broke the news of his retirement to Man United’s players in 2013
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Ashley Young has revealed there were tears in the Manchester United dressing room when Sir Alex Ferguson announced his retirement in 2013.
Ferguson, widely regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, had been in charge of United since 1986 and had won a wide range of trophies.
Young recalled the emotional day in May 2013 when Ferguson called a meeting in United’s dressing room to inform the players of the news.
Young told Sky Sports: âWe obviously knew his wife’s sister was not doing well. I can think back to the day he came into the locker room and the boss never really met with us in our locker room and he called a meeting and everyone was like ‘something’s not right here’.
âWe drove in and people were talking to each other and we said things seemed a little strange. We heard things on the radio as we drove in.â
Ashley Young revealed there were tears in the Man United dressing room as Sir Alex Ferguson retired
Young had already been at United for two seasons when Ferguson revealed he would be leaving
Young stated that the players understood Ferguson’s decision to retire, but the players were left emotional by the news.
It was also revealed that Ferguson apologized to some players who had recently joined the club.
Young said: âWhen he came in and explained his reason, of course everyone completely understood and you knew why he had to step aside.
‘Everyone has so much respect for him, there were tears in the dressing room because he left and the players had been with him for so long. Even players who had just come in, he apologized to a few players who had just been signed.
It was hard to take, it was hard to deal with, but everyone knew why he made the decision.â
Ferguson was in charge of United from 1986 to 2013, winning a wide range of trophies
Young played two seasons under Ferguson after his move from Aston Villa, winning the Premier League title in the legendary manager’s final season in 2012-13.
Despite Ferguson’s departure, Young remained at United until 2020, going on to win the FA Cup, Europa League and League Cup.
In total, Ferguson won 38 trophies as United manager, including 13 league titles, five FA Cups and two Champions League successes.
