By TARA ANSON-WALSH, FOOTBALL REPORTER
Published: | Updated:
Sir Alex Ferguson was verbally abused by Leeds United fans during Manchester United's clash with the Premier League side at the weekend.
The legendary Manchester United manager was in the stands to watch his former side take on their bitter rivals Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday. Dominic Calvert-Lewin cancelled out Bryan Mbeumo's opener as the match finished 1-1.
A video circulating on social media has shown the 84-year-old, who was carrying a walking stick, appearing to exit the stands when he was heckled by a fan.
'Fergie', was shouted at him repeatedly from above the stairs, causing him to look up.
The fan then shouted 'you ****,' which Ferguson appeared to ignore, before he headed down the stairs. Across the video was the caption 'hahahaha'.
Whether there will be any repercussions for the fan remains to be seen. Daily Mail Sport have contacted Leeds United for comment.
The legendary Manchester United manager was in the stands to watch his former side take on their bitter rivals Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday
The Leeds-Manchester United rivalry is typically fraught, and one that Ferguson experienced to its fullest during his 26 years in charge.
Reflecting in his autobiography, Managing My Life, Ferguson said: 'The (Elland Road) crowd invariably give us the impression that a lynching would be too good for us.
'I have always said Liverpool-Manchester United games are fierce in many aspects. But it never reaches the levels of Leeds United. Never.'
He described the atmosphere best after a defeat in Yorkshire where he wrote: ‘You can feel the hatred, the animosity. I said to the players afterwards, “Now you know what it’s like to lose here”.
‘The Leeds supporters were awful. I almost want them to be relegated because of their fans. I don’t think they deserve to be in the Premier League. Such hatred really is incredible.
‘A TV camera caught a woman screaming abuse at me. What chance have you got? You could understand the animosity better if it was Liverpool and United because they are just down the road from one another.
‘You can’t say the same for Leeds. You are expecting a pitch invasion at any moment.’
This past weekend's clash was positively friendly in contrast, with the post-match press conferences confined to talking about the action on the pitch rather than dealing with any situation off it - although the abuse of Ferguson had not been made apparent to either manager at the time.
The Leeds-Manchester United rivalry is typically fraught, and one that Ferguson experienced to its fullest during his 26 years in charge
After, Leeds boss Daniel Farke praised his side for their dominance in the 'special game'.
'It says a lot about how far we've come in the last three years that we are slightly disappointed it was just a point against Manchester United. Overall, it was not necessary to be in a losing position at half-time, I thought we were the dominant side.
'We lacked a bit in our decision-making in the first half, we added clarity in the second half. We had momentum completely on our side. We threatened them with physicality, maybe it wasn't the time for our more technical players.
'We are definitely on the right path. This is a special game. I wanted to go for it, it's a sign that we're doing many things in the right way.'