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Home > Football > Edwards, Rowley, Law, Best, Cantona, Ronaldo - how do you pick Man United's greatest team? 


Edwards, Rowley, Law, Best, Cantona, Ronaldo - how do you pick Man United's greatest team?

Lifelong Red Devils fan PHIL SMITH's Old Trafford memories go back to the Busby Babes and even earlier. For footballing icons and legends, look no further.

 

by Philip Smith on 09 June 2007

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    Apart from doodling on beermats, discussing the local talent, chucking a few aimless darts and trying to convince everybody daft enough to listen that today’s beer isn’t half as good as the stuff we used to drink as lads, you can guarantee that pub conversations will invariably switch to football before the night is out.

    Tickets for the match on Saturday? Who should be dropped? Who shouldn’t? Who are they going to sign next? When is the manager going? Then, when you think you’ve solved all the club’s problems, somebody comes up with: ”Eh, who would you have in your best team of all time?” Settle down for a lock-in!

    After reading the Sportingo article on Alan Sugar selling all his shares at Tottenham and the author’s idea of the club’s WORST team (to go alongside their worst chairman), I thought I’d attempt the impossible: Picking Manchester United’s greatest team of all time. Easy? Try it!

    Trouble is that since my childhood recollections of United during the World War II years when they played at Maine Road because of air-raid damage to Old Trafford, the goalposts have been moved a few times. It’s doubtful if any sport on earth has undergone such explosive change.

       
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    Comments (32)

    by Kevin  on June 09, 2007

    Not so sure about Ronaldo or Cantona how about both?

    by Alan Holden  on June 09, 2007

    Only it's ROGER Byrne and JIMMY Delaney! Regards fellow old git.

    by Gordon Stokes  on June 09, 2007

    I would have Roger Byrne, not Johnny Byrne who I've never heard of, at left back. Sorry to be so pedantic.

    by lovecr717  on June 09, 2007

    cristiano!!!

    by Author Phil  on June 09, 2007

    Johnny Byrne - wow! Had so many names to conjure with I dropped a couple. Must have been thinking about Johnny "Budgeie" Byrne who played for some unfashionable London club! Sorry.

    by Sportingo editing team  on June 09, 2007

    Thanks to everyone who pointed out Phil's brainstorm - or should that be name-storm?! Roger Byrne and Jimmy Delaney have now been given their rightful status in the article.

    by Alan Holden  on June 09, 2007

    From the 2-3-5 era, well how about, Jack Crompton (penalty saver king, John Aston (snr)Henry Cockburn,Johny Morris. From the later eras how could you miss out Billy (Liam) Whelan, David Herd, Arthur Albiston, Gordon Hill, Johnny Berry, Paul Ince, Alex Dawson, Jimmy Greenhoff, Shay Brennan, Johnny Downie, Arnie Muhren and Albert Quixhall. I know difficult when you are only picking three teams but we have have had a magnificent footballers playing for a magnificent team since WW2. Alan Holden

    by katty  on June 09, 2007

    just *cristiano ronaldo*.

    by Fred  on June 09, 2007

    Ronaldo? not in same class as the Greatest ever CANTONA and that includes Best.

    by Sagar  on June 10, 2007

    I don't think our dear king eric will take too kindly to being on the bench!! but your right it is just so tough to come up with a team. I guess whoever you ask will probably reel off names of players they most enjoyed watching, which in most of the older supporters would be the likes of best charlton etc with probably a few players from the SAF era whereas the younger fan like myself will probably choose from the SAF era. here comes my list Smeichel G. Neville, Bruce, Staam, Irwin Beckham,Keane,Scholes,Giggs Cantona, Rooney Subs Van der Sar Vidic Ferdinand Heinze Ronaldo Solskjaer Nis telroy I have chosen 7 subs as used in europe and some national leagues around europe. Obviously I will have missed out a name or two but this is what reels off my head atm. Sagar

    by jordan  on June 10, 2007

    cristiano ronaldo is the best. he is the magical player

    by craig  on June 10, 2007

    Ronaldo has the potential to be the greatest player ever at the old trafford faithful, cantona was probably the most entertaining but best has the medel that neither of these two have, the european, to me the one that standsout as the greatest player of all times is giggs. he has won everything and beat the best, he has made fools of juventus, single handedly destroyed arsenal (on more then one occasion) man city, liverpool, barca real you name it he has done everything and has been doing it for neally two decades. giggs for me

    by kevin anderson  on June 10, 2007

    eric cantona was very good certainly,but cristiano is an incredible player. and my favorite man united is including: cristiano ronaldo-paul scholes-eric cantona-ryan giggs-roy keane-wayne rooney-garry neville-edvin van der sar-patrick evra-denis law and ferdinand

    by brian  on June 10, 2007

    How on earth you can exclude Peter Schmeichel and replace him in United's top xi with Edwin Van Der Saar is beyond me and millions of other United fans and even neutrals! Fair enough that there is a case for their comparison but only when Edwin was maybe with Ajax, and that doesn't even count obviously, as the idea is to pick eleven top performing UNITED players!

    by jennifer  on June 11, 2007

    cris-cris-cris-cris-cris-cris-cris-cris-cris-cris and cris.

    by johnny  on June 11, 2007

    i agree with jennifer,CRIS is the best for man united.

    by victoria  on June 11, 2007

    in my opinion,RONALDO is a different player. he is unpredictable and his play excites me!!!

    by Linda  on June 12, 2007

    George was a beautiful man who could play the beautiful game and nobody can ever take that away from him.There will only be one George Best ever. Nobody will ever be as great as him, just out and out magic.

    by *cmj*  on June 12, 2007

    Not a chance in hell wud Rooney b in my team; u cn av Ronaldo n Giggs on the wings wit Cantona playin jus behind Van Nistelrooy, problem of Ronaldo/Cantona solved (they can even swap n change)

    by madeleine  on June 13, 2007

    He is a stupendous phenomenon for footy world...!

    by benny  on June 14, 2007

    Why are Charlton and Best not in both 60's team? You don't seem to have a clue as t what you're talking about here in my opinion.

    by stephy rock  on June 14, 2007

    Cris is the best for Man United.

    by Dave  on June 15, 2007

    Schmeichel-Neville, Byrne, Edwards, Stam-Keane, Scholes, Best Giggs-Cantona Law. Subs: Stepney, Irwin, Crerand, Pallister, Robson, Charton, Beckham, Meredith, Taylor, Rowley. well well naming an all-time united side is one of the toughest exercises in football. what i have tried to do is get some of the best players of different eras according to my extensive reading of the history of the club. I dont think Cristiano or Rooney can yet qualify to form part of this team.. Ronaldo is yet to prove that he can deliver in big games, and this many times over. Rooney has not had the best of season, and though we all know he's supremely talented, i dont think he has done enuff to overhaul either Cantona or Law or even Tommy Taylor, whom many apecialists still regard as the greatest centre forwards ever to pull on a red shirt.