Alex Ferguson ignored Liverpool legend for 20 years after overhearing rude joke

Sir Alex Ferguson's main enemy throughout his illustrious 26-year tenure as Manchester United boss was undoubtedly Liverpool.

The former United manager infamously vowed to "knock Liverpool off their f****** perch" in 2002 and was rarely in for a warm welcome whenever he made the trip to Anfield.

But his relationship with one former Reds star was particularly frosty for the best part of two decades after he accidently overheard a joke made at his expense.

Gary McAllister won a cup treble while a Liverpool player, and played vital roles in both their League Cup and FA Cup triumphs in 2001. But it was an incident that occurred while he was still at Leeds that sparked a fallout with Ferguson.

Having spent six seasons with Leeds in the nineties, McAllister helped United's Elland Road rivals win the first division in 1991/92 as they became the final champions of England before the inaugural Premier League season.

After Leeds had registered a 3-2 victory over Sheffield United earlier on in the day, Liverpool had beaten United 2-0 in the penultimate game of the season to help secure the title victory.

Following their win over the Blades, McAllister watched the United vs Liverpool clash at the home of Lee Chapman alongside Eric Cantona, David Batty and a television crew.

Once Liverpool's win over united had been confirmed, the trio of Leeds players started to celebrate while still McAllister was still wired to the television studio.

A comment made by the former Scotland international during said broadcast would lead to a lengthy breakdown in his relationship with Ferguson for the next 20 years.

"We all went back to Chappy’s house after the game in Sheffield to watch Man U play Liverpool at Anfield," told fans in