David Moyes was sacked by Manchester United just nine months into his tenure after replacing Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford, and Rio Ferdinand has revealed the moment he knew the Scot was not the right man for the job

Rio Ferdinand has revealed the two Premier League matches where he knew David Moyes was the wrong manager for Manchester United.

Moyes infamously lasted just nine months at Old Trafford, after being hand-picked by Sir Alex Ferguson to replace him and handed a six year contract. Replacing the 13-time Premier League winner was an unenviable task, but few expected Moyes’ fortunes to unravel as quickly as they did.

And Ferdinand, for whom Moyes season at the helm was his last at United after over a decade, can remember training ground preparation that convinced him things weren’t going to last under the ex-Everton boss.

On The Overlap’s Stick to Football podcast, Ferdinand said: “We played against Liverpool and Chelsea. And I remember, in the training session, we were setting up to stop [Eden] Hazard and [Philippe] Coutinho.

“And (Moyes) put a box in the area where they play in, and the players are looking at each other thinking ‘we don’t set up to stop individuals’. We had never done that at Man United. (Lionel) Messi, we didn’t even have a massive plan for him! Should have done! Those two games made be think, ‘wow, we are setting up with a defeatist mentality’.

“A big difference to what a title-winning team was last season. That was one of the things that I think the players were, not against him, (but) it gives you a question mark in your head. And that question mark is a big thing within a squad.

Moyes was let go from his role at Old Trafford less than a year after he took on the top job. It’s taken the Scottish manager some time to get back on track after a few unsuccessful stints elsewhere.

After difficult periods at Real Sociedad and Sunderland, Moyes led West Ham to victory in the Europa Conference League last season during his second time with the Hammers.

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On the other hand, United are still striving to reclaim their past success – they haven’t won a Premier League title since Sir Alex Ferguson left the club in 2013.

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