Man Utd sporting director candidate 'mentored' by Ferguson as shortlist compiled
As former Scotland striker Dougie Freedman emerges as a contender for the sporting director post at Manchester United, his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson has come to light.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe's investment in the club has prompted some to ask questions about the future of current football director John Murtough. An exit for CEO Richard Arnold has already been confirmed, with Ratcliffe's party understood to be looking at alternatives.
One of those options is Freedman, who won two caps for Scotland in the early 2000s. The 49-year-old currently holds a similar role at Crystal Palace, and it was during his days as manager of the London club that his mentor-mentee relationship with Ferguson began.
As reported by The Mail, Ferguson and Freedman first met in 2011 when Palace claimed a shock victory over United in the League Cup. Darren Ambrose and Glenn Murray scored in an extra-time win for The Eagles, who lost on penalties to Cardiff City in the semi-finals.
Less than a year later, the pair were neighbours. Freedman traded Palace for Bolton, who were at the time looking to make an immediate return to the Premier League following relegation under Owen Coyle, and maintained a respectful relationship with his compatriot in the years which followed.
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Freedman's last managerial job came to an end in 2016, when he was sacked by Nottingham Forest. The year after that, despite Ferguson urging him to consider the manager's job at Hearts, Freedman took up the Palace director of football role which he still holds to this day.
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Dougie Freedman was Sir Alex Ferguson's neighbour during a spell as Bolton manager (PA)Freedman is one of the men who United have reportedly added to a shortlist if they do decide to make a change. Other names mentioned in recent weeks include ex-Tottenham chief Paul Mitchell, Atletico Madrid's Andrea Berta, Atalanta's Lee Congerton, former AC Milan technical director Paolo Maldini and the Rossoneri's old director of football Ricky Massara.
While not officially confirmed, Ratcliffe's 25 per cent investment in United is close to being wrapped up. The INEOS chief is investing around £1.3bn, and is expected to have control over a variety of sporting matters once he is in place.
The 71-year-old has dipped his toe into the world of football before, with involvement in French club OGC Nice and Swiss outfit Lausanne-Sport. There had been some questions over how this might impact United's eligibility for European competition, with Nice currently sitting in a Champions League spot in France, but earlier comments from UEFA head honcho Aleksander Ceferin appear to give both clubs hope.
"We are not thinking about Manchester United only," Ceferin told the Overlap in March. "We've had five or six owners of clubs who want to buy another club. We have to see what to do. The options are that it stays like that or that we allow them to play in the same competition.
"I'm not sure yet. We have to speak about these regulations and see what to do about it. There is more and more interest in this multi-club ownership. We shouldn't just say no for the investments for multi-club ownership, but we have to see what kind of rules we set in that case because the rules have to be strict.
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