A film about Sir Alex Ferguson’s life on and off the pitch has had its world premiere at the scene of some of his greatest glories — Old Trafford.
The documentary, Never Give In, was directed by the former Manchester United manager’s son, Jason Ferguson, and is intended to give fans an insight into a man known for his fiery personality and determination.
Speaking at the premiere on Thursday night, Mr Ferguson said: “It’s about a man’s life, you know, it’s about the adversity he has faced personally and professionally at different stages of his life, and it’s about memories.
“He decided to be open he decided to be honest and he was, I think it was possibly difficult for him at times.
“I think the difficult thing is when the doctors were being interviewed, and you’re getting information that you weren’t aware of at the time, in terms of, I knew it was serious but I didn’t quite know until those interviews were done exactly how serious it was.”
In 2018, Sir Alex suffered a brain haemorrhage and the documentary shows him reflecting on his time in hospital, and how deeply the near-death experience affected him and his loved ones.
Sir Alex said: “The NHS were fantastic, I mean one day I am walking about in Wilmslow and then the next day I am in hospital and I don’t remember a thing.
“And the recovery obviously was fraught at times with, times where you are starting to wonder, you get lonely and you wonder ‘are they telling you the truth’ and things like that, well here I am.”
The premiere was attended by current Manchester United stars including Harry Maguire, Marcus Rashford, Scott McTominay, and Luke Shaw as well as actor Christopher Eccleston and technical director of Manchester United, Darren Fletcher.
Current Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said: “I think he is special to all of his ex-players; I think he has got a place in all of our hearts because has gave his life for Man United and for us, of course we gave ours to him as well, and that’s maybe one of the best compliments I can give him is that we felt we played for him.”
He added: “He is a role model, I have played and coached under him for 15 years, and now he is still helping me whenever I need and his career will never be matched by anyone but if you can get anywhere near that’s fantastic.”
During the film, Sir Alex pays tribute to his wife, Cathy, and dedicates his career to her.
Jason Ferguson said his mother had been his father’s “rock”, adding “she has allowed him to indulge in his obsession”.
“She more or less brought me and my brothers up on her own and made sacrifices to allow him to do what he did”, he said.
The film can be seen in cinemas and on Amazon Prime on May 29th.
