Did you know Sir Alex managed Scotland?

Ferguson took over the reins with a heavy heart as he appreciated the responsibility on his shoulders, after feeling it was a privilege to work alongside one of the best managers of his generation.

“When Jock offered me the job, I jumped at it,” he recalled. “It was a boost for me at that time in my career. I was basically learning all the time and keen to do so. It was an honour, first of all. But what an opportunity, the chance to learn from someone like Jock Stein.

“To be honest with you, I bombarded him with a million questions every time I was in his company. It was just football, football, football.

“The difficulty I had after Jock passed away and I got the job full-time was not being able to do training sessions on Thursday with the Aberdeen team,” he told the Scottish FA website.

“When it happened, we were top of the league and we ended up third, but we won two cups and we could have won the Treble. Given the importance of Scotland getting to the World Cup, especially after Jock had passed away, I think I was right to spend the time I did with Scotland.