Sir Alex Ferguson openly accepted that he misses being in the dugout during "big games" as he discussed life after Manchester United. Following his departure at the end of the 2012-13 season, the Red Devils have faced challenges in maintaining the consistent success they experienced under his management, despite appointing renowned tacticians such as David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and Ralf Rangnick.
Manchester United under Sir Alex
The Red Devils clinched the Champions League title twice under Ferguson's leadership, first as part of their historic Treble in 1999 and then again in 2008. Additionally, United made it to the Champions League finals in 2009 and 2011 but were defeated on both occasions by Pep Guardiola's Barcelona.
Sir Alex still misses his Work
In a recent interview with BBC Breakfast, the iconic manager admitted that he occasionally misses being in the dugout and managing in general. He recalled mentioning to Cathy how much he missed his work during the first year of his retirement. As a result, he made it a point to attend the finals of most European league matches after retiring, as he found them to be reminiscent of his old times. Additionally, he emphasized the importance of Manchester United's continued involvement in such events.
"Yeah, I miss it sometimes. I think the first year after retirement, I went to the European final and I said to Cathy 'This is what I miss' - big games, the European games. So then I went to most of the European finals because I found something I could relate to, something I would like to have done every day. Because these are the big events that United should always be involved in." - Sir Alex said.
It has been sixteen years since Manchester United's last Champions League victory which came under their gaffer , Ferguson and the old man is still hopeful that the team will break the jinx and finally return to the pinnacle of European football very soon.