Erik ten Hag explains why he has ditched Sir Alex Ferguson tradition at Man Utd

Erik ten Hag has endured a rocky few years at Manchester United after replacing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Old Trafford and has got rid of a tradition started by legendary former boss Sir Alex Ferguson

Given the stress that Erik ten Hag has faced at Manchester United, not many would blame him for turning to a glass or two of wine post-match.

Legendary former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was a big advocate of a glass with his opposite numbers after games regardless of the result. But Ten Hag has revealed that he has been forced to ditch the tradition - something he blames the media for.

Asked if he was friends with any other Premier League managers, the Dutchman replied: "No, colleagues, not friends. There was always a good tradition in English football to meet each other after the matches.

"But with all the media now, I think that tradition is a little bit going away. I think it was a pity because I think it was a nice tradition in English football but that is how football media has progressed.”

Despite getting rid of the long-running tradition apparently started by Ferguson, Ten Hag has still made sure to make the Scot’s love of wine known. After United’s fourth round FA Cup tie against Newport County last season, he was spotted giving opposition boss Graham Coughlan a bottle of luxury wine picked out by Sir Alex.

In a video shared on social media, Ten Hag said: “We have a nice gift for you,” to which Coughlan said: “You know I don’t drink wine, I drink Budweiser.”

“Really, Budweiser? American beer? But this is a really very good one chosen by Sir Alex so maybe your wife will enjoy it. Maybe take a taste, I think you will like it.”

Image: Getty Images) Getty Images)

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Unfortunately the tradition didn’t always go to plan, even during Ferguson’s hugely successful stint at Old Trafford. The 13-time Premier League winner previously revealed a prank he played on fellow wine connoisseur Sam Allardyce.

“My 25th year at United, Sam Allardyce bought me a 1986 [Chateau] Latour, the year I came to United. His kit manager gave it to me on the Saturday morning, and I said, ‘I’m going to play a trick here’, so I opened it up and put a bottle of Ribena in," he told the Telegraph

“So Sam comes in after the game and I say, ‘Thanks very much for the wine, Sam, it’s really very generous of you’. He said, ‘Well, you go home and enjoy that’. I said, ‘No, I want to share it with you’. So I open it up and I go, ‘What’s this, Sam?’

“He bolts out that door, honestly, like a wild man, screaming for his kit manager. And when he came back in I had the bottle opened and I was pouring the glasses. It was a fantastic moment. I had to get him.”

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