SIR GARETH SOUTHGATE claims Sir Alex Ferguson was RIGHT to try to ruin his managerial career before it had even started.
When Middlesbrough were thumped by Sevilla in the 2006 Uefa Cup Final, Steve McClaren became England boss and skipper Southgate took his job at the Riverside.
Southgate, then 35, went from playing in his biggest ever club game to being a manager.
But his start to life in the dugout was precarious and he reckons accepting Boro chairman Steve Gibson’s call was “simultaneously one of the best and one of the worst decisions I ever made”.
Legendary Manchester United chief Ferguson argued that Southgate, now 55, should study for his coaching badges.
Fergie said then: “Managers and coaches should be completely qualified if we want to raise the standards of our game.”
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And in his new book Dear England, Southgate says: “I should have been more aware of what a daunting task I faced.
“Middlesbrough had to secure special dispensation from the Premier League Board to permit me to become manager before I’d completed my qualifications.
“When the League Managers Association lodged an official challenge to that decision, supported vocally by Sir Alex Ferguson, I was just annoyed that they would seek to block my opportunity.
“The upshot was that I had to study for my licences while simultaneously getting to grips with my new job.
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“It created a lot of additional stress for me. So thanks very much for getting involved, Sir Alex.
“It was only later, with experience under my belt, that I came to appreciate that Sir Alex was right.
“There should be a minimum qualification for any manager before they take control of a top- flight team. But I had to learn that the hard way.”
- Dear England by Gareth Southgate, £25, Century, is out now.
