Stam bears no Fergie grudge

Jaap Stam insists he bears no grudge against Man Utd boss Sir Alex Ferguson.

Jaap Stam insists he bears no grudge against Sir Alex Ferguson, despite still being unhappy at the manner of his exit from Manchester United.

The Dutch defender was shipped out of Old Trafford five years ago after incurring Ferguson's wrath for comments in his book.

Stam initially joined Lazio, before moving on to Milan prior to returning to Holland this summer to sign for Ajax.

He will come up against United this weekend in the Amsterdam Tournament and he is confident there will be no ill-feeling with his old manager.

"I don't hate him and I don't bear a grudge," Stam told The Sun.

"If I meet him and it's appropriate, then I'll shake his hand. I don't have any quarrel with him.

"I'm only interested in Ajax."

But there is still a lingering discontent at the way he left Old Trafford and the 34-year-old feels his exit is a lesson for the current United squad.

He added: "I'd played three good seasons. Then they go behind my back and act like that because they can get a lot of money for me.

"The one thing I learned is you are never sure of your place at United.

"We won the Champions League and the World Club Championship while I was there, so I wasn't happy with the manner and way they conducted themselves.

"They showed a total lack of normal decency and respect so I had to leave. In retrospect, I heard that they had seemingly done a deal long before that."

Ruud van Nistelrooy has recently been sold after a breakdown in his relationship with Ferguson, although Stam has yet to discuss the situation with his compatriot since the striker joined Real Madrid.

Stam concluded: "I don't know enough about the circumstances involved. I only know he's a top striker and he'll do well at Real Madrid."