'It was a routine' - How Sir Alex Ferguson managed pressure among Manchester United squad

Many people involved in football can attest to the fact that Sir Alex Ferguson could be a fiery figure, and it is no surprise given the constant pressure he was under at Manchester United.

He built an elite mentality at the club, but that relentless desire to win - and win in a certain way - could weigh heavily on players and staff. One of Ferguson's major strengths during his near-27 years in charge at United was his man-management, and part of that was managing pressure and stress.

Rene Meulensteen spent six years as part of United's coaching staff, and the Dutchman was around the squad daily. He felt pressure with the players but explains how Ferguson would ease the mood inside camp - although he never stopped short of making his expectations clear.

“One thing I’d noticed about Sir Alex over the years was that his drive had always remained the same.

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“I am certain that his attitude towards the praise other teams got in comparison with United was that he was never bothered. But his attitude towards the drive he had for his own team had probably changed over the years.

“At the start, he had to rebuild so much of the club that he would have had to have been much more hands-on.

“By the time I was working as a first-team coach in 2007, he had established United as one of the top clubs in the world. Certainly the club with the most pressure.

“And yet, on a day-to-day basis, I never felt any of that pressure. Not once. That was purely down to Sir Alex’s management of the players and of the staff.

“His own expectations and standards were probably higher than those demanded of us from the outside. But he was so relaxed