Alex Ferguson has admitted that axing Park Ji-Sung from
his squad for last season's Champions League final against Chelsea
was the "hardest decision I have ever had to make".
United went on to lift their third European Cup following a
dramatic penalty shoot-out victory in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium on
May 21, but South Korean midfielder Park was forced to watch the
game from the stands, sat in his club suit, after being omitted
from the 18-man squad by manager Ferguson.
Having fought back from a serious knee injury to return to
action last December, the former PSV Eindhoven star had appeared to
have made himself a key figure as United closed in on a Premier
League and Champions League double.
But the 27-year-old still missed out on a place on the bench in
Moscow.
Ferguson, despite selling the likes of David Beckham and Ruud van
Nistelrooy and ruthlessly dropping high-profile players such as Jim
Leighton, Bryan Robson and Steve Bruce from FA Cup final teams
during his reign as United boss, admits his decision to axe Park
was as tough as any.
"It was a terrible decision to have to take. In many ways it was
the hardest decision I have ever had to make because Ji-Sung had
played such a great part in the previous games against Roma and
Barcelona.
"But I had Owen Hargreaves for that game in Moscow because I felt
he was the right one for that specific game. Then I had the
decision of choosing our seven substitutes and which players could
have an impact on the game.
"You look for a mix of defenders, midfielders and attackers and I
opted to go with Nani ahead of Ji-Sung, simply because I think Nani
has got a goal in him. That was the only distinction and why I
finally chose to go with Nani."