Alex Ferguson will retire as Manchester United boss at the end of the season, the Premier League champions announced today, ending the career of the most successful manager English football has known.
Ferguson, 71, guided United to 13 Premier League titles and two European Champions League crowns in 26 years in charge at Old Trafford.
It was not until yesterday that rumours of Ferguson's shock retirement started circulating, but he said it was a decision he had been considering for some time.
"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," Ferguson said in a statement.
"It was important to me to leave an organisation in the strongest possible shape and I believe I have done so," added Ferguson, who will bow out with United having wrested back the Premier League title this season from local rivals Manchester City.
Ferguson, who will remain at United as a director and club ambassador, said he was confident he was stepping down as manager with the squad in good shape.
"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," he said.
"Over the past decade, the Glazer family have provided me with the platform to manage Manchester United to the best of my ability," he added in a reference to the club's US-based owners.
United gave no indication of a successor amid speculation Everton's David Moyes could fill the Old Trafford hot seat vacated by his fellow Scot. Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho, who established a friendly rivalry with Ferguson when in charge of United's rivals Chelsea, has also been touted for the role.
