'I was dubbed Man Utd's best finisher in years – I'll never forget how I was treated'

 Giuseppe Rossi arrived at Manchester United as a teenager with the world at his feet - and an intimidatingly glowing endorsement from none other than Sir Alex Ferguson.

Now 39, the former Italy international broke into United's senior squad aged just 17 in 2004 after moving to Manchester from Parma, where he signed his first professional contract. His lethal finishing and technical prowess in training didn't go unnoticed, prompting Ferguson to make a bold comparison to one of the club's greatest-ever players: Paul Scholes.

At the time, a highly impressed Fergie declared: "If you ask me who was the last striker with Rossi's potential to come through the ranks here, then I would definitely say Scholesy. They are different types of players but similar in ability.

"We have got great hopes for Rossi," the legendary Scot added. "He has shown, in his training performances in particular, a fantastic ability."

For a young striker trying to make his mark, being likened to Scholes - a man who would go on to amass 155 goals from midfield and lift 11 Premier League titles - was the ultimate compliment.

Rossi made his first-team debut in November 2004, replacing David Bellion late in a League Cup tie against Crystal Palace. Almost a year later, he announced himself on the Premier League stage in style, replacing Ruud van Nistelrooy against Sunderland and finding the back of the net just nine minutes later to wrap up a 3-1 win.

Despite sharing a dressing room with superstars like Scholes, Gary Neville, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo, Rossi insists there was no hierarchy when it came to how Ferguson managed his players.

Speaking to Corriere dello Sport, Rossi revealed the human side of the notoriously fiery boss: "He [Ferguson] treated me like a son. He did that with everyone.

"I expected perhaps a kind of divinity even in his attitudes to others. Instead, he was an easy-going person. He protected every player and treated everyone the same."

Ultimately, the fierce competition for places in United's attack meant Rossi had to look elsewhere for regular minutes. A loan spell at Newcastle at the start of the 2006/07 season yielded just one goal in 13 appearances, before a far more successful temporary stint back at Parma, where he registered nine goals and five assists in 20 games.

When he returned to Manchester, the pathway to the first team was still blocked - with Rooney and Ronaldo ever-present figures in United's attack and Carlos Tevez arriving from West Ham - leading to his permanent sale to Villarreal.

Rossi went on to enjoy a brilliant six-year spell in Spain, establishing himself as one of La Liga's deadliest marksmen before cruel injury luck disrupted his prime. He later took in spells with Fiorentina, Genoa, Real Salt Lake and SPAL before officially hanging up his boots in July 2023.

While his United career didn't reach the heights Ferguson once predicted, Rossi's memories of his time at the Theatre of Dreams - and the manager who believed in him - remain as warm as ever nearly two decades later.