A statue dedicated to Aberdeen FC’s “greatest manager ever” has been unveiled at Pittodrie.
Sir Alex Ferguson is Aberdeen FC’s most successful manager, guiding them to three titles, four Scottish Cups, and triumphs in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup and UEFA Super Cup during his tenure.
And today, he was present at the ceremonial unveiling of a statue bearing his likeness, that has been designed by sculptor Andy Edwards.
Joined by supporters and invited guests, RedTV broadcasted the event live for virtual season ticket holders watching at home.
Those in attendance broke out in applause as videos highlighting Sir Alex’s achievements with the Dons over the years played to a packed-out Richard Donald Stand.
Statue will move to new stadium
Sculptor Mr Edwards took to the stage prior to the unveiling and told the crowd it had been an “honour” to capture the legendary manager’s likeness.
He said: “Such an exceptional man. You can see why any player would give their all for him and I tried to.”
The bronze statue will be installed outside the Richard Donald Stand and has been designed in a way that it can be moved to a new stadium.
Its design has been based on an image of Sir Alex celebrating the club’s 1980 league success, after a 5-0 win against Hibernian all but secured the title.
‘No manager could have a better start to their career than here’
As the legendary manager made his way to the stage, Sir Alex was cheered on by everyone in attendance before giving a short speech of his own.
He said: “What happened here was a foundation – when I came here the place had a great chairman, a great vice-chairman.
“No manager could have a better start to their career than that.
“It was all here, all they needed was the direction and the desire and they showed all that eventually.
“What we achieved here was a miracle.”
The former Manchester United boss will also be in attendance at Aberdeen’s match against Dundee United tomorrow – a fixture that is expected to be the first sell-out game at Pittodrie since the Dons played Celtic on Boxing day in 2018.
New Aberdeen boss Jim Goodwin wants to make Sir Alex’s Pittodrie homecoming a day to remember by leading Aberdeen to their first league win of 2022.
‘He made us believe in things we didn’t think were possible’
Fans both young and old turned out to catch a glimpse of the man responsible for so much of the history enshrined into Aberdeen Football Club.
Neil Gordon, 60, said: “Sir Alex was a big part of our youth growing up, he made us believe in things we didn’t think were possible.
“He has a way of getting people to understand and believe in what he believes in and he made us a particular type of person that we are today – believing in the club and supporting it with a passion.
“It’s phenomenal what he’s done for Aberdeen and football in general.
“I’d go as far to say that he is the greatest manager ever.”
Steve Robertson, 54, agreed, and said he was pleased to catch a glimpse of him.
“I thought it was brilliant today, it was great to see Alex Ferguson back,” he said.
“It felt like he was home again, I think the statue looked really good and it is even better that he had input into the design.”
Fans also took to social media to celebrate with the 80-year-old.
Watching todays event at Pittodrie just reminds me how lucky I was to be a fan and a regular at matches home and away during the tenure of Sir Alex Ferguson! 👏👏👏👏
— DC63 (@delboy200963) February 25, 2022
Sir Alex pic.twitter.com/veISeNpVI3
— Ruairidh MacKenzie (@RuairidhMck93) February 25, 2022