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5th June 2015
08:21pm BST
"I’ll always be grateful to Sir Alex, who was like a second father to me, for letting me move back to Barcelona. He wanted me to stay and fight for a place, but understood what Barca means to me."
"I moved to United when I was a 17-year-old kid. Nemanja Vidic is five years older than me and Rio nearly nine years and at the time they were the best central defenders in the world. They never had a bad game!
"I learned so much during my time at United – sharing a dressing room with Paul Scholes, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Ruud van Nistelroy, Ryan Giggs at such a young age was an amazing experience."
"I didn't play as much as I would have liked but it was a masters in development both as a player and a person. Also, although I was in the shadow of two great players, I did contribute - in the 2008 Champions League campaign I played three times and scored two goals."
Pique is still only 28, but it's a wonderful tribute to Ferguson who was known for his attention and care of younger players who arrived to Old Trafford during his time with the club.
Fans who have had to endure Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans in the meantime must wonder why the club ever left him go.
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