"The boy had a good heart, he was just beaten by his background."
Ravel Morrison appeared lost for words at hearing a text message paying tribute to him from former Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson.
Morrison was a member of the United youth side which won the FA Youth Cup in 2011, featuring alongside Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard. Widely tipped to establish himself as a star in the first team at Old Trafford, the midfielder failed to make an impact amidst rumours of various distractions away from football.
Ferguson reluctantly agreed to his sale to West Ham in 2012, with the now-28-year-old moving on to a variety of different clubs in the time since leaving Old Trafford.
Ahead of welcoming Morrison to his Vibe with FIVE show this week, Rio Ferdinand text Ferguson to ask his opinion on him.
The former United defender said: "I [only] asked for five words from him, but he text me back this: "Rio, my first and lasting memory of Ravel as a young lad was that he was always got time and space. He's always available to be on the ball, so unusual for a young lad of his age."
""Give my regards to him please. Another thing about Ravel, which I've always treasured because no other young player who made their debut did it, was after the first game in the first team that he played, the next morning he came to my office and gave me a letter thanking me for giving me his debut."
""I was gobsmacked Rio. The boy had a good heart, he was just beaten by his background.""
Morrison looked visibly moved by the comments, and later admitted that he was moved by it.
"It touches you, do you know what I mean? If I could go back in time, I would change 90 per cent of my life."
https://twitter.com/rioferdy5/status/1361415825626783748
The full interview can be watched below.
