Sir Alex Ferguson stopped Man Utd players shouting at each other after storming down team bus

Wayne Rooney has previously claimed that Manchester United’s success was down to the players playing video games on the team bus – but Sir Alex Ferguson was not a fan

Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson was known for his strict discipline, and it seems that even video games on the team bus weren’t safe from his wrath. The insight comes from former Red Devil Paul Scholes, who shared the anecdote on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast with Paddy McGuinness and fellow ex-United star Nicky Butt.

The conversation started when McGuinness mentioned a tale told by Old Trafford icon Wayne Rooney. The club’s record goal scorer suggested that part of United’s incredible success during his time at the club was due to the bonds formed while playing video games on the team coach.

A number of United players, including Rio Ferdinand, John O’Shea and Wes Brown, would participate in sessions of SOCOM on the PlayStation Portable.

However, despite Rooney’s assertions, these gaming gatherings didn’t sit well with Sir Alex, who was famed for his iron-fisted leadership.

When quizzed about Rooney’s comments, Scholes said: “I didn’t play those games, it was more the younger lads in the group.

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“The PSP (the PlayStation Portable) and SOCOM, and I can hear them all f*****g shouting from the back of the bus, and it’s sort some of shooting game, a war game, and it’s all you could hear and it was f*****g annoying.”

McGuinness chimed in, asserting that bus journeys to and from matches were usually filled with card games rather than video games.

Scholes added: “I do remember the boss going down the back of the bus saying, ‘Shut the f**k up – because they’re all shouting at each other, ‘We’re on our way to Arsenal away here, what’s wrong with you?'”.

However, he did admit that there might have been some camaraderie benefits from the group gaming, saying: “Sometimes it’s quite funny as they are having a right go at each other at the back and there is a bit of camaraderie and it’s a team game as well.”

During his time at United, Rooney clinched five Premier League titles and a Champions League title. On his self-titled podcast, the former Everton star revealed how playing an online shooting game helped foster better communication among his teammates, as per the Manchester Evening News.

“I really believe a big part of our success was playing on the PSP,” said Rooney. “It got us communicating more – we used to play it on the plane, on the team bus.

“It would be me, Rio [Ferdinand], Michael Carrick, John O’Shea, Wes Brown. You have to talk, you have to tactically be right, go and revive people when they get killed and it was a massive part of our success – ask any of those players, it was brilliant.”

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