World Cup winning coach Marcello Lippi has hailed the influence of Sir Alex Ferguson on Manchester United's success.

Lippi said: "People say that players make the difference and a coach counts for only 20% of a team's results.

"I don't think it's like that at all. I think today the coach is very important.

"When you are managing a number of great players, many of them from different countries with different mentalities and cultures, the personality and the character of the coach becomes crucial.

"This is the case with Ferguson. You can clearly see that every United player is ready to sacrifice himself to help the team.

"Nobody thinks for himself, everyone is focused on the team first. To have success in every competition you have to be a great manager."