The Premier League
champions have confirmed the most successful manager
in the history of British football is to stand down at
the end of current season

Manchester
United have confirmed that Sir Alex Ferguson will step down as the club's manager at the end of the
season after 26 years in charge
at Old Trafford. The 71-year-old is the most
successful manager in the history
of English football, having won 38
trophies - including 13 Premier
League titles - since taking over
from Ron Atkinson in November 1986. Ferguson will say his goodbyes to
the Old Trafford crowd after
Sunday's home clash against
Swansea before taking on a role
as an ambassador on the United
board of directors. In a statement on United's
official website, Ferguson said:
"The decision to retire is one
that I have thought a great deal
about and one that I have not
taken lightly. It is the right time. "It was important to me to leave
an organisation in the strongest
possible shape and I believe I have
done so. The quality of this league
winning squad, and the balance of
ages within it, bodes well for continued success at the highest
level whilst the structure of the
youth set-up will ensure that the
long-term future of the club
remains a bright one. "Our training facilities are
amongst the finest in global sport
and our home Old Trafford is
rightfully regarded as one of the
leading venues in the world. "Going forward, I am delighted to
take on the roles of both
Director and Ambassador for the
club. With these activities, along
with my many other interests, I
am looking forward to the future. "I must pay tribute to my family,
their love and support has been
essential. My wife Cathy has been
the key figure throughout my
career,providing a bedrock of
both stability and encouragement. Words are not enough to express
what this has meant to me." "As for my players and staff,
past and present, I would like to
thank them all for a staggering
level of professional conduct and
dedication that has helped to
deliver so many memorable triumphs. Without their
contribution the history of this
great club would not be as rich. "In my early years, the backing
of the board, and Sir Bobby
Charlton in particular, gave me
the confidence and time to build a
football club, rather than just a
football team. "Over the past decade, the
Glazer family have provided me
with the platform to manage
Manchester United to the best of
my ability and I have been
extremely fortunate to have worked with a talented and
trustworthy Chief Executive in
David Gill. I am truly grateful to all
of them. "To the fans, thank you. The
support you have provided over
the years has been truly
humbling. It has been an honour
and an enormous privilege to
have had the opportunity to lead your club and I have treasured
my time as manager of
Manchester United."
Ferguson scheduled a meeting to
break the news to staff at the
club's Carrington training ground
at 9.30am and will hold an
interview with United's in-house
television station, MUTV, at 10.30am. Everton manager David Moyes has
been installed as the
bookmakers' favourite to
succeed the Scot while Real
Madrid boss Jose Mourinho is also
among the favourites to take over at Old Trafford. The announcement of Ferguson's
decision to retire came after
intense speculation following a
golf match between United
players and coaches at Dunham
Massey on Tuesday. Ferguson has long been planning
for his succession and has
consistently cited his health as
the decisive factor in the timing
of his retirement. He had a
pacemaker fitted in 2004 and United confirmed last week that
he would undergo hip surgery in
August. David Gill's decision to stand
down as chief executive this
summer saw Ferguson lose a close
ally within the club and there had
been suggestions that he came
close to quitting at the end of last season losing out on the
Premier League title to rivals
Manchester City. Ferguson previously expressed his
regret over announcing his
retirement before the end of the
2001-02, which he felt led to poor
on-pitch performances and
resulted in a U-turn after he had a change of heart.