Sir Alex Reveals The One Thing He Regrets About Winning The Champions League In 2008
REUTERS/Darren Staples
Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has expressed his regret for leaving out Ji-Sung Park from his squad that won the UEFA Champions League final in 2008.
The legendary Scot has revealed how regretful he still feels for leaving out Ji-Sung Park, who was an integral part of the Manchester United squad during his days at Old Trafford – during the 2008 UCL final.
Ferguson told MUTV: “Well, to win the European Cup is fantastic. It was a really great bunch of players with a great attitude about them and a good, strong squad.
“My problem in the 2008 final, maybe I even regret it to this day, was I left Ji-sung Park out completely in the final. He’d played such a great role and that’s the problem when you get to these finals.”
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Sir Alex then went on to talk about a similar incident which occurred during the 2011 final, when Dimitar Berbatov was axed from the squad that lost the final against FC Barcelona.
“At Wembley [against Barcelona two years later], I did it to Dimitar Berbatov and he took it badly. He didn’t deserve it,” he added. “No player deserves to be left out of the final.
“That’s why we try hard at these European seminars with the coaches to try to get 11 subs in the final. You’ve got four or five sitting in the stand who made fantastic contributions in getting there.
“You start the tournament in September and go through to May and changes can happen. Maybe you sign a player in January, for instance, who can end up playing in the final. It’s a difficult part, always, picking a team for the final in Moscow and I had to make that horrible decision.”
The legendary Red Devils’ boss is now set to return to the Old Trafford dugout in June, after he was confirmed as the manager that will take charge of the Manchester United XI in Michael Carrick’s testimonial match.
