He wrote: "Sir Alex Ferguson should be able to do anything he wants at the club until the day he dies. Such a lack of respect. It’s totally scandalous. Sir Alex Ferguson will be my boss forever! And I throw them all in a big bag of s**t!"

Richard Keys, who was Sky Sports' chief football presenter at the height of Ferguson's tenure, offered a similar view on X (formerly Twitter). He posted: "What small-minded thinking. He’s not my favourite but he’s a living legend, the best our game has ever seen.

"He should be treated with respect by [Sir Jim] Ratcliffe, not disdain. Man Utd cost cutting? Morale sapping I’d say. Ratcliffe is killing the club."

According to The Athletic, Ferguson was told by Ratcliffe in a face-to-face meeting that United were no longer in a position to commit to his annual salary. The report states there is no bad blood between Ratcliffe and Ferguson, who remains an executive director.

United have been in the process of cutting costs since Ratcliffe purchased a minority stake in the club in December. They have outlined plans to axe 250 members of staff while leading a shake-up of their backroom structure among other measures.

Ratcliffe previously waxed lyrical about Ferguson, who won 38 trophies during his time in charge of United between 1986 and 2013.

Speaking earlier this year, the INEOS chief said: "He’s got a lot of experience, a lot of stories to tell and a lot of thoughts about the club. I don’t think he has been encouraged to get involved but he is still very thoughtful about the club and he has an immense amount of experience.

"He really understands the values and traditions of the club and what it’s all about. He is still fiercely competitive, Sir Alex Ferguson."