Sir Alex Ferguson claims getting older has mellowed him out a bit, but some Manchester United players might disagree.
The United boss has banned players under 23 years old from accepting free, high-performance sports cars from Chevrolet, according to the Mail.
“As a gesture of goodwill, [new United sponsor] Chevrolet immediately offered United’s first-team stars a choice of luxury cars and understandably many of the club’s big names plumped for iconic Corvettes,” the Mail reports.
“However, Sportsmail understands Ferguson immediately intervened and decreed that no player under the age of 23 — no matter their standing in the team — should be allowed to order a sporty model.
“This means players such as young striker Danny Welbeck, 21, and defenders Phil Jones, 20, Chris Smalling, 22, and Rafael, 22, will be banned from driving anything not approved by Ferguson.”
Some see this as a power play by the United manager, as he looks to reaffirm his authority over a new generation of United players. Others might view it as Ferguson keeping his boys out of harms way.
It’s more likely a way for Ferguson to remind the young players of their standing both in the game and at the club. If they are good enough to remain at United — and presumably win trophies — for the next few years, they can drive the free Corvette like Ryan Giggs reportedly plans to do. If not, then they can pay for one out of their own pockets (but not let Ferguson catch them driving it around), or choose from models like the Chevy Aveo, Cruze, Orlando or Spark.
Maybe it takes a not-so-mellow old man to teach youngsters that the best things in life aren’t always free, and it takes hard work to get them.
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