Sir Alex Ferguson thought about what I did at Man Utd – I thought he was going to sack me

Mike Phelan has detailed how Sir Alex Ferguson ‘went ballistic’ with him for popping a balloon in the dugout.

It’s a clip that has lived in British football fame for more than a decade and a half. Manchester United legend Ferguson and assistant Phelan traveled to Stamford Bridge in September 2008 with high hopes of giving hosts Chelsea a scare.

Except that Ferguson and several other members of his United staff ended up being scared off in west London thanks to Phelan. And the former Old Trafford no. 2 revealed the extent of Ferguson’s anger that came his way following the incident.

READ MORE: Manchester United have been handed a £21m transfer dilemma they didn’t expect

READ MORE: Manchester United transfer news live Erik ten Hag latest as Man Utd targets left in limbo

“He didn’t have a sense of humour, if at all, at the time,” Phelan replied when asked about the iconic incident during a recent appearance on talkSPORT. “I saw a balloon pop and I thought, ‘If the balloon comes near me, it’s got it.

“And that attraction of a balloon coming at you as the game goes on, I just took it and popped it and never thought anything of it. But I started laughing because I thought it was funny. But when I look back, you can see the bench and the manager watching the game, the intensity of the game and I was just relaxed.

“I blew up this balloon and it went ballistic. I thought that was the end of my job, to be fair. He had the fear of his life. But he saw the funny side the next day because I think his grandchildren mentioned it . for him, so I think they took the Micky out of him.”

Ferguson left his deputy and can be seen uttering “fuck you” as he scolded Phelan, whose response was simply to laugh. The United icon may have laughed at the time, although even he could see the funny side in time.

It also won’t have helped Ferguson’s condition that the Red Devils failed to secure all three points that day in west London. Park Ji-Sung put United ahead with an early breakthrough, only for Salomon Kalou to salvage a 1-1 draw with an 80th-minute equaliser.

What United would give to have Ferguson back in the dugout today after more than four years without a win at Stamford Bridge. However, fewer jump scares must be a happy perk of the club legend’s retirement.