Former Manchester United defender Jaap Stam has stated that he has a non-existent relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson.

Stam played under the legendary Ferguson at United between 1998 and 2001 and the duo helped the club enjoy unprecedented success with a trio of Premier League titles as well as a rare treble in 1998/99.

However, Stam was unceremoniously sold to Lazio by Ferguson after the Dutchman had criticised the manager in his autobiography.

More than 15 years on from his departure from United, Stam has gone on to reveal that his strained relationship with his ex boss has not yet improved.

The 43-year-old said in an interview with the Daily Mail: "My relationship with Sir Alex? There's not a relationship.

"When I was playing for Ajax in a pre-season tournament in 2006, that was the first time we saw each other after what had happened.

"You could feel the tension. We were in the centre of Amsterdam in a press conference and I was captain of Ajax at the time so I went and Sir Alex and some people from the board at United were there, too.

"I could feel he was looking at me. But that's football - after years we met up. You may regret someone else's decision but in football you have to keep going.

"We shook hands, had a little chat, and continued with our own thing. But I've got no more bad feelings. At the time I wasn't happy with him because I wasn't satisfied with my own situation.

"For me it was a bit shocking."