Jonny Evans has lifted the lid on what Sir Alex Ferguson was really like in the Manchester United dressing room.
Evans spent 11 years at United , nine of them under Ferguson, after joining the club as a youngster, and while the Scot had a reputation for dishing out the hairdryer treatment and keeping his players on a tight leash, he insists that wasn't the case.
While Evans, now at Leicester City, took "life lessons" from his time under the "old school" Ferguson, he revealed he does have a softer side as well.
“It’s like having a teacher at school who was stricter than the rest but you remember things they might have said," he said.
"Sir Alex was the same. You don’t always get it at the time but they are like life lessons where you get certain rules and things that you try to stick to.
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"He was old school but it was great to have that. Even now there are certain situations where I think ‘Would he have liked me to do that?’ It’s kind of a guideline.
"The thing with Ferguson was he never ever came across as strict. He very much left us to our own devices.
"He would let us go whichever way we wanted – he was fantastic like that. The thing was you knew that if you did step out of line or do something wrong, he’d find out about it.
"There was always that fear that he might find out about it. That was a worry. The thing with him was, he always wanted people to be their own personalities. He liked different characters and personalities. He let everyone be exactly what they wanted to be."
Evans joined United after being spotted playing for a club in Northern Ireland.
He had to ease his way into the dressing room but went on to make 198 appearances and revealed that he eventually graduated to being the one playing the pranks on the likes of Ryan Giggs , Paul Scholes and Gary Neville.
"When you’re a young lad coming in it can be a bit overwhelming. When I first came into the United dressing room, these guys were my idols and you’ve got to try and fit in," Evans said.
“When I first came into the team my locker was in the corner and two seats away there was Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes!
“I grew up as a kid in Belfast supporting United. Obviously, you’re new and, quite rightly, you always feel like you’ve got to be respectful.
“But by the time I left I was able to feel free to open Giggsy’s locker and steal his after shave.
“I got that from Gary Neville . Every day Gary used to walk past Giggsy’s locker and raid his cosmetics."
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