Exclusive: Graham Alexander loving life with the Manchester United legends at Salford City

I have temporarily gone mad. In my defence, m’lud, his saved numbers would be worth a quick swatch.

Thankfully, Alexander’s gaze returns to myself. I pretend that I wasn’t thinking about stealing his phone so I could boast the best contacts book in the business, and we continue our chat.

Who wouldn’t want to know Becks’s take on Steven Gerrard? Or what Giggsy thinks of Neil Lennon. Scholesy is out of a job. Would he want to manage in Scotland – or even Scotland? Butty, I’m sure, has strong views on plastic pitches and as for the Neville brothers . . . they have opinions on everything.

We are ten miles outside of Manchester at the training ground of Salford City FC of the English National League, the tier below League Two and senior football.

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This club is owned by Manchester United’s legendary ‘Class of 92’. That’s Gary and Phil Neville, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and David Beckham who recently became a joint owner when he used spare change to buy ten per cent.

You may well have seen the fly on the wall documentary ‘Out of their League’ which has followed the club’s rise to fame since they were taken over in 2014. The star of the next series, well, apart from the world famous owners, will be former Scotland international Alexander.

“You honestly don’t notice the cameras after a while,” insists the 47-year-old and I’m trying to believe him. “So, what you’ll see of me is what I am. In fact, it was one of the last things Gary mentioned when I took the job, that the documentary crew would be here. I’ll be interested to see how it turns out.”

There are no cameras this Friday afternoon. There is no Becks either. However, I could tell during a two-day visit that this Salford FC is not an expensive hobby. These superstars are in this for the right reasons. In the summer, they chose Alexander as their manager.

“Chris Casper, the club’s sporting director, phoned me about it, spoke about Salford City and asked if I wanted to meet Gary,” said Alexander. “So we sat down, two or three times, I talked with Ryan as well, and we went over how things could be and what I could bring.

“I’ll be honest. I was flattered these people even wanted to speak to me. I have huge respect for what they have done in the game. They played at a level I never did and were the biggest draw for me wanting the job.

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“This is no vanity project. David Beckham doesn’t need the publicity. I knew there were successful people and that they were serious about this. That came across within minutes of meeting Gary.

“And while I’m hugely respectful of everything they achieved in football, I’m not star-struck. In fact, I played against all of them apart from Nicky Butt. I can guarantee they don’t remember that!”

Gary Neville, somewhat unsurprisingly, is the man Alexander deals with. At last Saturday’s game, a goal-less home draw with Barnet, he was the only owner at the game – not that I got near him – although Beckham was at the new Peninsula Stadium earlier this month.

“Gary is the driving force of the owners in that he is in constant contact with myself,” Alexander reveals. “He is there for me all the time but is enough of a football man, and this goes for all of them, to keep his distance and allow me to manage.

“We have great communication, which is vital, but I’m never told what to do. I don’t get Gary phoning to tell me who to pick, although I value his opinion. He is straight-talking and I like that. Give me a boss who says what he’s thinking rather than having me playing guessing games any day of the week. Look, I work for these people, famous or not, and I want to be a success for them. They share the same ambitions as me. It’s been a fantastic eight months or so and let’s see where it takes us.”

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Salford sit fourth, three points behind leaders Leyton Orient. The league winners go up to League Two and there is then a play-off from second to seventh, so they are well set having come up three levels since 2014.

“The owners want this success but I don’t think they had such a timeframe in mind,” admitted Alexander. “The short-term goal is to get to the Football League. That’s our immediate ambition. As for long-term, you would have to speak to the owners. It’s they who will decide the direction of Salford.”

Ah, but it’s all about the money. There is a lot of ill-feeling towards a non-league club that can buy Adam Rooney from Aberdeen for an undisclosed fee – apparently a few hundred thousand – and pay players full-time wages which, if the critics are to be believed, are way higher than the rest of the league.

It is clear that the stadium cost millions. It has a 5000 capacity, two ends of covered terrace, lovely stands, complete with hospitality boxes, new dressing rooms and a sports bar set to open soon.

Also, the match-day experience is great. You can get curry, burgers that looked great, wine, beer and cider, and there was a sweet stand for kids. None of this comes cheap, though.

Personally, I don’t have a problem with this. Salford is a working class area and any investment should be welcomed, especially as next season the academy will be increased and an under-20 team introduced.

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“I wasn’t really aware of the feeling towards the club and the owners before I got here,” admitted Alexander. “But every team finds a new level against us. Sides at the bottom can’t buy a win and then we come down and suddenly they are a brand new team.

“Gary is hugely aware of what Salford means. He is always on about the importance of the fans who have been here from the start. He won’t let anyone forget where we are, who we are and where we have come from.

“I want to make the people of Salford proud. We have a small fan-base but we’re getting 2500 to games. It’s a working class area and we are all aware of that.

“Here’s the thing. The status quo gets boring. What do people want? For Salford to remain a small club for the rest of their existence? For lack of a better word, that’s a crappy way of thinking.

“We are Salford City, a northern team in the Conference that wants to sign good players, play exciting football and be successful. When I hear the negative comments, I can hear the jealousy.”

Alexander, who won 40 caps, hasn’t changed since his Scotland days. He remains a nice guy, intelligent but driven, and is enjoying this challenge.

“I hate losing. When I compete, and this goes back to my days as a player, I was a different animal. I am a nice fella but if you played against me, even trained with me, you might think I’m a pain in the a***.

“A big part of me, which has been in me since I was eight, is a desire to compete. I feel I have to be like that to win.

“I always felt I had a very good football brain. I had to because I had made my way up from Division Four to the Premier League and you’d better adapt – and there was international football – so I had to change as a player. I’m intense. I can’t think of another word. My wife and kids won’t thank me for that but they’ve had to understand my commitment to this football club.”

It’s hard not to come away with the feeling that Salford FC, with Alexander in charge, could do just about anything.

“I don’t see there being a ceiling for us,” he says. “This could turn out to be an amazing story.”