Shortly after the announcement came this morning that Sir Alex Ferguson would be retiring from football management after more than 26 years at Manchester United, the tributes started flooding in. Journalists, players, fans and officials began tripping over themselves to congratulate the record-breaking boss on his achievements. Fergie’s retirement was mentioned more often on twitter in the first few hours following the announcement than Thatcher’s death. In some ways, the rhetoric has been similar: the end of an era; we’ll never see another; divisive but respected.

Ferguson’s unsurpassed managerial record is well documented. United under Ferguson have won as many titles as Arsenal in its whole history. Thirteen league titles, four FA cups and two European cups, including the unprecedented (and not yet repeated) 1999 treble. What is most remarkable about Ferguson, though, is just how synonymous he has become with his beloved club. His relationship with United seems to belong to another era: that of Busby, not Mourinho. The Guardian’s Daniel Taylor pointed out that Ferguson’s tenure at Old Trafford has seen the comings and goings of 24 managers at Real Madrid and 18 at Chelsea. To hold on for so long, with so much success, in the modern game of football with its billionaire backers, branding strategies and baying shareholders, is truly a special feat.

Ferguson’s statement today spoke of building a team with promise for the future, and therein lies the secret of Ferguson’s success. He has nurtured players from the very beginnings of their football careers, has invested in training and scouting, has built relationships of trust with players and backroom staff alike. David Beckham today spoke of Ferguson as a “father figure”. Ryan Giggs, at the age of 39, has never played under another manager in his career. According to Steve Bruce, a former captain of Ferguson’s and the current Hull City manager, it is unsurprising that many of his former charges have followed his lead into management. The adoration almost all of Ferguson’s former players seem to have for him demonstrates better than anything else that Fergie has treated Manchester United as a footballing family. That’s something most football fans long to see for their clubs.

Of course, Ferguson is far from universally loved. The famous ‘hairdryer’ treatment meted out to players and journalists doesn’t always go down too well, while Ferguson has attracted the ire of football fans for his complaints to referees and the famous ‘Fergie time’ (calculated as an additional 72 seconds for every match United are losing at full time).

More seriously, Ferguson could be accused of having a blind spot where his sons are concerned, famously refusing to speak to the BBC for years after journalists raised questions about one football agent son and withdrawing three loan players from Preston North End following the sacking of another son, Darren, as manager. Even those with whom Ferguson has had a stormy relationship, however, acknowledge his unparalleled success as a manager. That Beckham still speaks of his former boss in such glowing terms after the infamous boot-kicking incident is a testament to Fergie’s character. For many Manchester United fans, he is simply irreplaceable.

Replacement is inevitable, however. The bookies’ favourite to take over is Everton’s David Moyes. Mourinho, Borussia Dortmund’s Klopp and even Old Trafford favourite Ole Gunnar Solskjær are in the frame. If United want to preserve the Ferguson family feel, Moyes is the obvious choice, having spent the past 10 years carefully building an Everton team who have consistently punched above their (financial) weight.

Whatever the future holds for United, the final game of the season at West Brom on 19thMay will be an emotional day for the club and a significant one for football fans everywhere.