Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has made peace with Sir Alex Ferguson by expressing gratitude for developing him as a player and hailing the Scot as "the best manager there has been."
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The United icons fell out before the Scot retired last year as the manager signed off in May by claiming Rooney wanted to leave Old Trafford.
It was the second time in three years the pair had fallen out and relations hardly improved with further criticism of Rooney in Ferguson's updated autobiography.
However, Rooney, marking 10 years as a United player, now wants to move on and has set his sights on adding another five years to his Old Trafford career.
"Sir Alex is an incredible person and manager," the United captain told MUTV. "He helped me a lot, helped us all. He brought it all together and made us world champions.
"I'm really grateful for everything he's done."
Ferguson bought Rooney from Everton in 2004 for 30 million pounds when he was a teenager and helped him successfully navigate his early years as a rising star in the English game.
Rooney said: "Sir Alex was vitally important. You see his desire for the game. I'm grateful to him for having faith in me to bring me from Everton.
"It was a great feeling [to meet Ferguson for the first time] -- Sir Alex is the best manager there has been. For him to recognise my talent and want me to join this club was a great honour for me.
"I was nervous of course. I met him at the training ground. Then we went over to Old Trafford to finalise everything. He drove me over in his car.
"There was just the two of us. I remember being nervous but he was great, made me feel welcome."
Rooney's future at United had looked decidedly uncertain before David Moyes and then Louis van Gaal showed renewed faith him but he now appears to be more settled than ever.
"I hope I can do 15 years," he said. "I've just signed a new long-term deal and hopefully I'll be looking back on 15 years in five years' time.
"It's gone quickly. But I'm looking forward to being as successful as we have been."