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Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson was a success at Old Trafford because he was brutally honest, according to former Reds defender Gary Neville.

The wily Scot won 38 trophies in a glorious 27-year spell at United and Neville was at the heart of much of that success.

Under Sir Alex, Neville became one of the game's finest right-backs and lifted eight Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.

Reflecting on his time at Old Trafford, on the 30th anniversary of Sir Alex's appointment, Neville believes the Scot's trademark forthrightness set him apart as a manager.

"His management style was very much see it, say it, review it, move on," he told a packed audience at the MEN Business of the Year Awards at the Midland Hotel.

"Everything that he saw, whether it was negative or positive he would say it - because you have to tell the truth. You would review it to take the message and then move on.

"Ultimately that’s how I would like to see my management style. He had such fantastic leaders in his dressing room, every one of them was a captain.

"They could say anything they wanted to each other any day and it was forgotten about in 10 mins. A bad pass was a crime and the standards were so high.

"I was privileged to work with him in that environment - it was all about truth. He surrounded himself with people who had the character and personality to accept the truth."

Since retiring, Neville has become one of the game's most insightful pundits with Sky and is also co-owner of Salford City.

Having tried his hand at coaching, with Valencia and England, the 41-year-old was keen to build on his success as a player.

"My major ambition post career was that I didn’t just become an ex-Manchester United player," he said.

"I think that it’s a trap many fall into, they feel as if they’ve climbed a mountain and that their achievement has finished.

"I didn’t feel like that at 35 and I wanted to make sure the next 35 years were more exciting and create more than I did in the first 20 years.

"It was my dream to play for United, I only played for one club, which is unbelievable in football terms and it was my club, the one that I supported, but I didn’t want to just live off that name and the club for the future as some people do."

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