Alex Ferguson Quotes

I can't believe it. I can't believe it. Football. Bloody hell.

I've never played for a draw in my life.

Hard work will always overcome natural talent when natural talent does not work hard enough.

I remember the first time I saw him. He was 13 and just floated over the ground like a cockier spaniel chasing a piece of silver paper in the wind.

They say he's an intelligent man, right? Speaks five languages! I've got a 15-year-old boy from the Ivory Coast who speaks five languages!

It was the most emphatic display of selflessness I have seen on a football field. Pounding over every blade of grass, competing as if he would rather die of exhaustion than lose, he inspired all around him.

You can't applaud a referee.

There is no evidence that changing your managers repeatedly leads to success, but there is evidence at Manchester United, I was managing there for 26 years I won 38 trophies.

When an Italian tells me it's pasta on the plate, I check under the sauce to make sure.

I have nothing but praise for the boy.

He is easily the best player in the world. His contribution as a goal threat is unbelievable. His stats are incredible. Strikes at goal, attempts on goal, raids into the penalty box, headers. It is all there. Absolutely astounding.

My greatest challenge is not what's happening at the moment, my greatest challenge was knocking Liverpool right off their f*****g perch. And you can print that.

That lad must have been born offside.

All they can talk about is Manchester United.

They say it was Cesc Fabregas who threw the pizza at me but, to this day, I have no idea who the culprit was.

If ever there was one player, anywhere in the world, that was made for Manchester United, it was Cantona. He swaggered in, stuck his chest out, raised his head and surveyed everything as though he was asking: 'I'm Cantona. How big are you? Are you big enough for me?'

Ronaldo could play for Millwall, QPR, Doncaster Rovers or anyone and he'd score a hat-trick. I'm not sure Messi could do it. Ronaldo's got two feet, he's quick, he's good in the air and he's brave, though Messi's brave too of course. I just think Messi is a Barcelona player.

Gianfranco Zola once sent Gary Pallister the wrong way to such an extent that he needed a ticket to get back in.

Everest in his slippers. That's what he was like.

I'm going to tell you the story about the geese which fly 5,000 miles from Canada to France. They fly in V-formation but the second ones don't fly. They're the subs for the first ones. And then the second ones take over - so it's teamwork.

You start with what you believe in. I believe in building a football club rather than building a football team.

Distinguish between power and control, delegate, be decisive - and always remember people's first names.

To not apologize for the behavior of the players to another manager is unthinkable. It's a disgrace, but I don't expect Wenger to ever apologize...he's that type of person.

The culmination of three trophies was the pinnacle of my career and it has been rewarded with a knighthood.

Players know that they can trust me which is really important.

They know that I had the ability to adapt to change, and they have seen that many times over the years. I think these are important parts of being in control of footballers.

It's great news. The reality of negotiations today is that they take time. But these have always been conducted in a good spirit and we are very pleased with the outcome. We can now look forward to the future.

When he's at the top of his game, there's not a team in the world that can handle Giggs' speed and penetration

Sometimes in football you have to hold your hand up and say, yeah, they're better than us.

David Beckham is Britain's finest striker of a football not because of God-given talent but because he practises with a relentless application that the vast majority of less gifted players wouldn't contemplate.

I think Rafael Benítez was an angry man.

He must have been disturbed for some reason. I think you have got to cut through the venom of it and hopefully he'll reflect and understand what he said was absolutely ridiculous.

I think Paul Scholes is the best player in England.

He's got the best skills, the best brain. No one can match him. There isn't a player of his mould anywhere in the world. Paul is irreplaceable.

Manchester United might not win Premier League every year, but we'd always be up there competing for it every year.

If my parents were still alive, they would be very proud.

They gave me a good start in life, the values that have driven me, and the confidence to believe in myself.

You are not going to be happy if you lose to a goal in the last minute.

It is difficult to take and difficult to get out of your mind.

I understand the intensity of the supporters.

I wonder how they could turn up for work on Monday morning after we lost 5-1 to Manchester City.

I'm going to tell you the story about the geese which fly 5,000 miles from Canada to France.

I'm a Pele fan from way back when I was a kid, and then there was always this thing later about Pele and Maradona. I was young and impressionable as a kid but it was always Pele for me.

In England, it's a rare thing to see a player smoking but, all in all, I prefer that to an alcoholic. The relationship with alcohol is a real problem in English football and, in the short term, it's much more harmful to a sportsman. It weakens the body, which becomes more susceptible to injury.

You have to put all the criticism of this club down to jealousy.

United have produced more players who have played for their country, more world-class players and more players who have won European Footballer of the Year than any other team in this country, so we must be doing something right.

Keeping players happy is not easy and I think anyone with a big squad will tell you that.

Football, bloody hell!

The pace of the game demanded a referee who was fit.

It is an indictment of our game. You see referees abroad who are as fit as butcher's dogs. We have some who are fit. He wasn't fit.

We are very focused this time and our preparation has been better.

We maybe made one or two mistakes last time, but not this time.

He was taking 30 seconds to book a player. He was needing a rest. It was ridiculous.

I used to have a saying that when a player is at his peak, he feels as though he can climb.

Liverpool can play for only five minutes and win the game, that is the way they are. They pump the ball into the box and with good set-piece delivery they keep you under pressure.

I'm privileged to have followed Sir Matt because all you have to do is to try and maintain the standards that he set so many years ago.

The lads really ran their socks into the ground.

I feel sympathy for the working class lad.

I've always championed about ticket prices and try to equate that to people's salaries.

I always said to the directors that the minute a player becomes more powerful than the manager of Manchester United, it's not Manchester United. You have lost control of the whole club. So I always made sure that I was in control. They always knew who the manager was.