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Present Swansea and former Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey has revealed how a touchline bust up with Sir Alex Ferguson during a Premier League game between Liverpool and Manchester United football club at Anfield had the legendary Scot impressed by the England midfielder according to Manchester Evening News. Shelvey apologised to the Scot after the game but the manager surprisingly told him that he was impressed by the player’s guile.
The incident occurred in a September 2012 fixture between the 2 fierce rivals. Jonjo Shelvey was going to the tunnel after being sent off for a horror tackle against Manchester United’s Northern Irish defender Johnny Evans when the confrontation with the former Manchester United boss took place. At that time he accused the retired United boss of ‘grassing’ him up. The touchline bust up at that time with the former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson had made Jonjo Shelvey a folk hero on Merseyside.
The 23-year-old admits that he was not right in trying to rile up Ferguson but says that he was immature and silly at that time. In an interview he said “I was a bit immature then and a bit silly. I pulled him aside afterwards and apologised to him and he was spot on with me. He said, ‘no I like it. It shows you’ve got a bit of b***s about you.’”
After the match Shelvey tweeted explaining how he had been wrong to confront the United boss but he also mentioned in his tweet that Ferguson was attempting to convince referee Mark Halsey to send him off. “I have also apologised to Sir Alex, just where I come from people don’t grass people up to get someone sent off,” Shelvey tweeted.
Remembering the aftermath of the incident with Sir Alex, Shelvey said: “I got a few high fives around town for the next few months, but it was silly from me on the professional stage. You don’t do something like that.
“I was young and I was starting for Liverpool against Manchester United, games don’t come much bigger. I was immature, the occasion got the better of me. It was part of growing up and you learn from those sort of things.”
Shelvey has come a long way since then, having earned his stripes at Swansea, he’s now a vital cog of their machine under manager Garry Monk. Although the player is still prone to the odd sending off, he’s a much better player.
