Sir Alex Ferguson tells Manchester United's Class of '92 they were 'off their heads' to buy Salford City

Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs stood by as their former manager unveiled Salford's new 5,000-capacity stadium

Evan Bartlett
Thursday 19 October 2017 17:42 BST
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Sir Alex Ferguson unveiled the new Peninsula Stadium on Thursday afternoon
Sir Alex Ferguson unveiled the new Peninsula Stadium on Thursday afternoon (Salford City)

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Sir Alex Ferguson has told his famous “Class of ’92” graduates that he thought they were “off their heads” to buy non-league side Salford City.

The ex- Manchester United manager was nonetheless full of praise for his former charges – Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs – as he unveiled Salford’s new 5,000-capacity stadium on Thuesday, telling them he was proud of their efforts.

The three United legends, alongside Nicky Butt and Phil Neville, bought the club in 2014 alongside investor Peter Lim.

Since then Salford have enjoyed two promotions in three seasons, putting them on the verge of the football league, and were part of a BBC documentary series which charted their transformation.

The five former players have also announced plans to open a new university in nearby Trafford.

Watch Sir Alex unveil the new Peninsula Stadium below:

“I’m not surprised,” Sir Alex said at the unveiling ceremony. “What you’ve done is you’ve given something back into the area that gave you the platform for your life.

“And a lot of people, maybe including myself, thought you were off your head, but nonetheless, putting something back in is a measure of the character you’ve got and right through your lives.

“Whatever you’ve achieved, whatever you’ve tried to achieve has always been done with purpose, energy and belief in what you’re doing.”

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