Sir Alex Ferguson Opens Up on Beckham, Class of '92 and Man Utd's Youth Revolution

Sir Alex Ferguson says David Beckham thought he wanted him gone when he sent him on loan to Preston in 1995, but he insists that was not the case.

Ferguson spoke to BBC Breakfast about the Class of '92, the group of young players that included Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Gary and Phil Neville and Nicky Butt. They won the FA Youth Cup in 1992 and became the heart of the United side that went on to rule English football.

"I put Beckham out on loan at Preston [in March 1995] and he thought I was trying to get rid of him, which was not true," Ferguson said. "David was the last to really develop because of his physique. Although he grew to 6ft, he was small and thin as a young kid."

He said the youngsters gave the club a new spirit. "We'd worked really hard getting youth into the club again and this bunch of young lads became the spirit of Manchester United," he said. "They added something. Apart from the great abilities they had, they had desire."

Many people, Alan Hansen among them, thought it was a mistake to lean so heavily on the kids. Hansen's famous line was that "you don't win anything with kids." Ferguson said he had done the same thing before, at St Mirren and Aberdeen. "I did exactly the same when I was in charge at St Mirren and Aberdeen," he said. "I had belief in young people because if you give them an opportunity there are two things that happen -- they become real stars and they can remain loyal to you as a manager."

He was proved right fast. United won the Premier League and FA Cup in 1995-96 and lost only six league games. They then won the league in four of the next five seasons and lifted the Champions League in 1999 as part of the treble.

Making room for the youngsters also meant letting experienced players go. Ferguson allowed 27-year-old Paul Ince to join Inter Milan and 31-year-old Mark Hughes to join Chelsea. Some fans did not like it, and one even warned Ferguson not to sell Ince or he would regret it.

Ferguson said it was a tough call. "Paul was a tremendous footballer, there's no doubt about that," he said. "He had incredible ability, but I just had that feeling that he just got carried away a bit at the time. He then got this offer from Inter Milan. I'm trying to weigh up one thing against the other. I'm looking at Paul Scholes and I said 'should we?'

"Milan's offer went from £7m to £7.5m and I said 'do it.' That's what your job is as a manager. You have to make hard decisions, and some decisions don't suit everyone."