"I totally admire what he has done at Old Trafford. The pair of us have a lot of common interests, not just in the way we see football but also off the field, especially in terms of horseracing.
"I first met Alex when I captained a Southampton side in a tournament in Aberdeen and he was a young manager at Pittodrie. I knew from the first time I met him he was very focused, very determined and very meticulous. He has not lost any of those qualities over the years.
"There is no doubt about it that, even when Alex stares at what seems like a football disaster in the face, he has always found a way out of it."