Sir Alex Ferguson was seen enjoying Man United’s 2-1 win over Chelsea on Saturday evening.
Ruben Amorim’s side secured a crucial victory last night at Old Trafford, with goals from Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro enough to pick up the three points despite a late consolation strike from Trevoh Chalobah.
It was a dramatic game played in chaotic conditions given the weather, with Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez and United goalscorer Casemiro both sent off.
And legendary Red Devils boss Ferguson, who remains a consistent presence at Old Trafford, was spotted particularly enjoying Sanchez’s red card, which came just five minutes into the clash.
As Altay Bayindir played a long pass forward, Benjamin Sesko flicked the ball on and Bryan Mbeumo just beat Sanchez to the ball and was cleared out, with the Spanish keeper given his marching orders by referee Peter Bankes.
The TV cameras panned to the directors’ box where Ferguson was situated, and the Scot appeared to say: ‘He’s off, he’s got to go,’ as VAR conducted a check on the foul.
Sir Alex Ferguson celebrated Robert Sanchez’s early sending off alongside Sam Allardyce
Sanchez was dismissed just five minutes into the clash after fouling Bryan Mbeumo
As the decision was confirmed, Ferguson then pumped his left arm up in the air in celebration at what proved to be a pivotal moment in the clash – and he also had a beaming smile on his face.
Blues boss Enzo Maresca was forced to make a double substitution after the red card, with the Italian brining on Filip Jorgensen in net for wonderkid Estevao Willian, while Tosin Adarabioyo replaced Pedro Neto.
To make matters even worse, Maresca had to withdraw Cole Palmer in the 20th minute with what seemed to be an injury, replacing him with Andrey Santos. Palmer put on his coat and went straight down the tunnel.
Ferguson’s celebration amused fans, who also noticed who he was watching the game with.
Sitting next to the Scot was his former Premier League managerial rival Sam Allardyce, although the pair do go to a lot of United games together and they have previously been seen alongside each other at Old Trafford.
Since facing off on the touchline during Allardyce’s various stints at Bolton, Newcastle and Blackburn among other clubs, they have remained good friends in retirement and share a love of horse racing.
Earlier this year, they spent time at Cheltenham Festival and they were later seen discussing the game during the first half of what was an engrossing encounter.
Ferguson was in attendance as United beat Chelsea 2-1 at Old Trafford on Saturday evening
Allardyce and Ferguson are good friends and regularly watch United games together
Despite the important victory, United boss Ruben Amorim remained level-headed post-match when discussing his side’s display.
Asked if United sent a message back to his critics, the United head coach scoffed.
‘It’s nothing about that!’, Amorim said. ‘People don’t have too many good things to say about our team and our results. I understand that, I’m just joking around all the time.
‘I have nothing to say to the critics, they are right most of the time. But we won, and that’s a good thing for us.’
United’s players soaked up a lap of appreciation in the rain at full-time – a rarity these days.
But Amorim warned his players against getting complacent given the sluggish start to the season ahead of another tough test away at Brentford next weekend.
‘Now it’s time to create a bit of momentum,’ he said. ‘We deserved the win, it’s just one win. And we need to think about the next one.
‘It’s really important because I understand the environment around the team and the coach. This game was really important for that.
‘It’s Manchester United winning a game at home, it’s just that. Three points. It’s trying to create the momentum.
‘We cannot forget that we suffer a lot when we are not in the top, in our maximum in all aspects. We can lose against Grimsby, we can win against any team. We need to take that for the next week.
‘Of course it’s really good to win, you can feel the environment in the dressing room. But forget that feeling. I prefer the other feeling now, because it will bring us the urgency to win again. That is really important again.’
Meanwhile, posting on his Instagram story after the game, Blues keeper Sanchez took responsibility for the defeat as he said: ‘On me today guys, big sorry for that, team put a massive effort on the second half but couldn’t get there.’
