The club is also commissioning a statue of the 69-year-old Scot who has brought 37 trophies to United since he took control on Nov. 6 1986.
Ferguson walked on to the Old Trafford pitch on Saturday through a guard of honor formed by the players before United's Premier League match against Sunderland and looked overwhelmed as United's chief executive David Gill announced the honor to the crowd.
Ferguson addressed the crowd before the kickoff and wrote in his program notes: "It has all been a fairytale dream — give or take the occasional nightmare." A huge banner was on display in the ground reading: "The Impossible Dream, Sir Alex Ferguson Made Possible." Steve Bruce, now the manager of visitors Sunderland who was in the United team when Ferguson led the club to their first English title for 26 years in 1993, added in his tribute: "There will never be another manager like Sir Alex." Among the many tributes to Ferguson was one from Barcelona's manager Pep Guardiola, tipped as a possible successor when he eventually retires.
Speaking in Barcelona, Guardiola said: "I'd like to congratulate him and tip my hat. I'd like to have the ability, like him, to always be able to re-build my team around competitive players."
