Sir Alex Ferguson admits he used to smuggle goods back from Europe!

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, who spent 45 years leading teams abroad both as a player and a manager, has revealed he saved a lot by smuggling goods into Britain from Europe during his trips as a player in the 1960s because the customs staff never checked his luggage.

Ferguson has been travelling to and from all corners of Europe during his playing and managing days. And he has admitted to packing his bags full of cheap goods on the return leg.

He was quoted by The Sun, as saying: "I brought a lot of stuff back. In those days nobody checked. You got on the plane and there'd be boxes of this, boxes of that, your bag would be full of stuff. Nobody bothered."

Sir Alex Ferguson. Pic/Getty Images

Ferguson first travelled to Europe as a Dunfermline player in the 60s - when the trips were a lot different to the luxury jaunts that pampered stars enjoy today.

Recalling one visit to Bilbao in Spain, he said: "We had to get a bus from a town on the border between France and Spain, seven hours along the Spanish coast, and the bus had wooden seats.

"There was no radio to keep us entertained. There was nothing, just wooden seats. We had to travel like that for seven hours and then play the next day," he added.