Fergie: My successor can't afford to be afraid of our achievements

Sir Alex Ferguson says the man who eventually succeeds him at Manchester United cannot afford to be afraid of the club's history and success.

Fergie's extraordinary success in a quarter of a century at United has made him an almost impossible act to follow, but he said the next Old Trafford boss must not be intimidated by his achievements.

'With any big club - and we're a massive club, there's no question about that, because we have a great history - you have to ingrain yourself into the fabric of the club immediately about what Manchester United is," said Fergie.

"That gives you a good chance in terms of understanding the history. It's not a history you should be afraid of. I was never afraid of it, I was proud to be part of the history.

"Then, after that, you need a strong personality, a strong mentality and of course you also need to know the game.

'There are a lot of things that come into management and, for a club of our size, personality, experience and a good background are important things."

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