Sir Alex Ferguson went ballistic over what I did at Man Utd – I thought he'd sack me

Mike Phelan has detailed how Sir Alex Ferguson "went ballistic" with him for popping a balloon in a dugout.

It's a clip that's lived in British football fame for more than a decade-and-a-half. Manchester United legend Ferguson and assistant Phelan travelled to Stamford Bridge in September 2008 with high hopes of handing hosts Chelsea a fright.

Except it was Ferguson and several other members of his United staff who ended up spooked in west London thanks to Phelan. And the ex-Old Trafford No. 2 revealed the extent of Ferguson's fury that came his way following the incident.

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"He had no sense of humour, had he, in that moment," replied Phelan when asked about the iconic incident during a recent appearance on talkSPORT. "I saw a balloon bouncing around, and I just thought, 'If that balloon comes near me, it's having it.

"And that attraction of a balloon coming towards you while the game's going on, I just picked it up and popped it and never thought anything of it. But I started laughing because I thought it was funny. But when I look back after, you can see the bench and manager watching the game, the intensity of the game, and I was just chilled out.

"I blew this balloon up, and he went ballistic. I thought that was the end of my job, to be fair. He had the fright of his life. But he saw the funny side the next day because I think his grandchildren had mentioned it to him, so I think they had taken the Micky out of him a bit."

Ferguson let rip at his deputy and can be seen mouthing "f*** off" as he scolded Phelan, whose