Inside Sir Alex Ferguson's inner circle of Man United legends: The player threatened 'he will end up in a ditch' by football chief, the cult-hero striker still playing at 38 and sorry Michael Carrick after his Old Trafford sacking

It's safe to say Manchester United are going through a rough patch - and then some - at the moment, but many of their supporters would have raised a smile at one photo that surfaced earlier this month.A few of the club's legends reunited to raise a glass to Sir Alex Ferguson on his 40th anniversary of being named Red Devils manager.Ferguson, who retired in 2013, won 38 major honours during a trophy-laden 26 years at Old Trafford.And as the 84-year-old received plaudits across the footballing world, he enjoyed a celebratory intimate setting with some of his former players and actor James Nesbitt in Manchester.Diehard United fan Nesbitt shared a group photo on Instagram, featuring Ferguson alongside Michael Carrick, Edwin van der Sar, Nemanja Vidic, Robin van Persie, Darren Fletcher, Jonny Evans, Javier Hernandez and John O'Shea.But what are those former United players up to now? Daily Mail Sport takes a look... Actor and Man United fan James Nesbitt (centre right) posted this picture with club royalty - clockwise from front left: Jonny Evans, Darren Fletcher, Robin van Persie, Nemanja Vidic, Michael Carrick, John O'Shea, Sir Alex Ferguson, Edwin van der Sar and Javier HernandezMichael CarrickUnless you've been on another planet, then you would know everything about Carrick this past week.The 45-year-old was sacked as United head coach on Thursday morning after a disastrous start to the season. Carrick, who has been/looks set to be replaced by Mauricio Pochettino, oversaw United's worst top-flight start since Ferguson replaced Ron Atkinson 40 years ago - with one victory in 10 Premier League matches as they sit 18th.Furthermore this season, he only won three of 15 games in all competitions.The downturn in the Red Devils' form is bewildering considering their upturn when Carrick replaced Ruben Amorim in mid-January last season. He was handed a two-year contract in May after guiding United to a third-place finish and qualification for the Champions League, losing just two of his 17 games as head coach. Carrick was sacked as Manchester United head coach on Thursday morning by club chiefs He oversaw United's worst top-flight start in Premier League history with one win in 10 gamesJonny EvansLike Carrick, Evans is also out of a job having been part of his backroom staff at United as first-team coach.After retiring as a player at the end of the 2024-25 season, Evans took up the position of head of loans and pathways at Carrington but left that role last December.Following Amorim's sacking he returned to the club to help Fletcher during his caretaker manager stint before being kept on by Carrick. Like Carrick, Evans was relieved of his United duties having been part of his backroom teamDarren FletcherThe sole former player still connected directly with the club, Fletcher is their Under 18s head coach. The Scot had to pause his role last season when becoming the club's first-team interim head coach following Amorim's sacking in January - drawing 2-2 with Burnley in the Premier League before overseeing their FA Cup third-round home defeat by Brighton a few days later.Having come through the club's academy, Fletcher knows what it takes to make the grade at the club and has the likes of Kai Rooney, son of Wayne, and Jacey Carrick, son of Michael, among his squad.And Fletcher's young charges are enjoying a strong start to the season which has included six goals in wins over Liverpool (6-3) and Burnley (6-0) at the end of last month. Fletcher is the Red Devils' U18s head coach - nurturing the club's latest crop of rising starsNemanja VidicThe former Red Devils captain had ambitions to go into coaching, having done his badges, but has turned his focus on building up a real estate portfolio - telling Gary Neville on The Overlap last July that he had put £4.5million into building 76 one or two-bedroom apartments in Belgrade, Serbia.However, this summer it was reported that Vidic had been a previous target of intimidation by a former football chief.According to Serbian media, encrypted messages show then-Serbia's football president Slavisa Kokeza wanted people to threaten Vidic after he had publicly criticised the Serbian Football Association (FSS) over the national side's failure to qualify for the Euro 2020 tournament.In the reported devised plot in 2020, Kokeza reportedly told one contact to make it clear to Vidic that he should 'stay away from the association or he will end up in a ditch'.As well as that, criminals were hired to monitor the former centre-back's movements in Milan, where he lived, and fit his car with a tracking device.Following the revelations, Vidic and his legal team filed a criminal complaint and sought an investigation into the claimed plot.'In mid-May, OCCRP and KRIK visited my home and told me they had obtained encrypted messages from Sky ECC (a now-defunct communication encryption service which EUROPOL said was widely used by criminals and was broken into by European police in 2021) and analysed them,' Vidic told The Athletic in July.'The messages were said to have come from the then-president of the SFF in 2020. They were about me and how to stop me from talking to the media. At the time, I was commentating on the situation in Serbian football. I was living in Milan, Italy, where I stayed after finishing my career with Inter. I hadn't yet moved back to Serbia, where I am from and where I live.' Vidic, who has turned his focus on building up a real estate portfolio, was reportedly a previous target of intimidation by a former football chiefEdwin van der SarVan der Sar's calm persona on the football pitch translated well into the boardroom during his near-seven-year stint at Ajax as their chief executive officer.The former Manchester United goalkeeper joined the Dutch giants' board in 2012, becoming CEO in 2016. During his spell Ajax reached the 2017 Europa League final and 2019 Champions League semi-finals with a young exciting core of players including the likes of Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt.The year Van der Sar left though Ajax finished third that season to qualify for the Europa League play-offs, missing out on the Champions League for the first time since 2009.A few weeks later in July 2023, Van der Sar was put in intensive care after suffering a brain haemorrhage while on holiday in Croatia.Three years on since recovering, Van der Sar is enjoying being away from football for the time being telling The Overlap in February: 'Now it's almost three years ago, so I've had time to recover with no stress, no phone in my hand - just doing the stuff that I've wanted to do.'Wake up when you want, walk the dog, go swim in the sea, go on holiday. I went to New Zealand for two months with [wife] Annemarie - nice things that I never had the chance to do before.'I started playing at 18 or 19, finished at 40, and at 41 I became one of the directors at Ajax until 53, so I thought it was the right time to take a step back. That's taken a little bit longer than I originally thought, to be fair, but we are enjoying ourselves very much.' Van der Sar was Ajax CEO for seven years before stepping down from the role in 2023 The ex-goalkeeper is now enjoying life with wife Annemarie after a brain haemorrhage in 2023Robin van PersieLike Carrick, Van Persie has turned his hand to first-team management since retiring.His first role was with Dutch outfit Heerenveen - signing a two-year contract with the club ahead of the 2024-25 season. However, his time there lasted just nine months as he took over the reins at Dutch giants Feyenoord.However, his time in Rotterdam lasted just 16 months there when he was sacked in June. He had guided them to second in the Eredivisie but they finished 19 points behind champions PSV Eindhoven.In explaining his sacking, newly-appointed technical director Devy Rigaux cited the style of play as a factor.'We conducted a thorough internal analysis,' he said. In this, we took into account, among other things, the development of the style of play and the declining trend in terms of points total, both in Europe and in the Eredivisie.'The conclusion was that it is better to start the next season with a new head coach.'The 43-year-old is awaiting a new job, like Carrick. Van Persie is currently without a managerial job after being sacked by Feyenoord in JuneJavier HernandezThe sole player from this list to still be playing, Hernandez made history by becoming the first-ever player signed to USL Championship outfit Atletico Dallas.In July, the 38-year-old penned a two-year deal with an option for a third year at the expansion club which will play in the second-tier of US football, below Major League Soccer.The Mexican striker still has a few months to wait for his debut though, with the season not beginning until March 2027.In the meantime, he was part of the FOX broadcast team for the recent World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, serving as an analyst.Last year, Hernandez was caught up in a sexism storm, which he later apologised for, after he made a series of statements on TikTok 'promoting sexist stereotypes that are considered media violence and go against gender equality in sport'.Hernandez said women are 'failing' and 'eradicating masculinity'.'Don't be afraid to be women, to allow yourselves to be led by a man,' said the former Mexico captain on social media.His remarks sparked a backlash, which led to his apology which included him saying: 'I deeply regret any confusion or discomfort that my recent words have caused.'Hernandez was fined and warned about his future conduct. Hernandez, who attended United's 4-4 draw with Aston Villa on November 8, is the only player still playing and has signed for USL Championship outfit Atletico Dallas ahead of their new termJohn O'SheaLike the majority of the names here, O'Shea's post-playing career has seen him turn to coaching with his current role being the Republic of Ireland assistant head coach.The 45-year-old has been in this position since August 2024, staying on with his homeland's setup following the appointment of Heimir Hallgrimsson as manager. O'Shea took charge of the team for four friendly fixtures that year following Stephen Kenny's departure in November 2023. His record read one win, one draw and two defeats in that period.The former defender will be hoping to help his country qualify for Euro 2028 which will be played on home soil across the Republic of Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales. O'Shea is Republic of Ireland assistant head coach - a role he has held since August 2024