All-Time Manchester United Team

Manchester United may be in the doldrums right now, but the club is still the most popular in the English-speaking world, bar none.

The club’s myth was made in the ashes of the 1958 Munich air disaster, which killed eight players from Matt Busby’s team that had won two English league titles and was battling for another. Busby, the father of the club, built up United to achieve his holy grail of the European Cup 10 years after Munich, before stepping aside.

United did not match the success of the Busby era until the 1990s when Alex Ferguson took the club to a level of unprecedented dominance in English football and won two Champions League titles. Since Ferguson retired in 2013, United has struggled, but remains a box-office draw, generating just as many column inches and clicks as winning a record 20 league championships did.

Founded on attacking play and skillful, exciting players, the club has had many stars decorate Old Trafford over the decades. These are the best in Manchester United history.

Peter Schmeichel

Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel wheels around in delight after teammate Ryan Giggs scored the equalizer against Juventus during a semifinal match for the European Champions Cup in 1999. Dave Caulkin / AP Photo

Position: Goalkeeper

Experience: 22 years (1981-2003)

Years with Manchester United: 8 (1991-99)

Career stats: Won the 1992 European Championships with Denmark. Voted in 2001 Reuters public poll as best goalkeeper ever. Scored 10 goals in his career.

English league titles: 5 (1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1998–99)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting goalkeeper

Bottom line: Peter Schmeichel was a fearsome competitor and a revolutionary with his distribution of the ball.

His Olympian-standard throwing arm became an attacking weapon for the fleet-footed United team of the 1990s.

He signed off by captaining United in the final of the Champions League in 1999.

Gary Neville

Manchester United defender Gary Neville, right, during an English Premier League match against West Bromwich in 2011. Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP Photo

Position: Defender

Experience: 19 years, all with Manchester United (1992-2001)

Career stats: Won a total of 20 trophies with Manchester United. England’s most-capped right-back with 85 caps. Played on United team alongside brother Phil Neville.

English league titles: 8 (1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2008–09)

Champions League/European Cups: 2 (1998–1999, 2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting defender

Bottom line: He was not the most talented of the famous “Class of ’92” youth team that formed the bedrock of the United team of the 1990s and 2000s, but Gary Neville was a leader within the team.

His closest friend was David Beckham, and together, they formed an excellent partnership down the right flank.

Rio Ferdinand

Manchester United’s Rio Ferdinand celebrates his goal with teammates during a Champions League match against Chelsea in 2011. Tom Hevezi / AP Photo

Position: Defender

Experience: 20 years (1995-2015)

Years with Manchester United: 12 (2002-14)

Career stats: Twice transferred for a then-British transfer fee record. Six times voted onto the Premier League Team of the Year. Voted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

English league titles: 6 (2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting defender

Bottom line: Tall, rangy and very quick, Rio Ferdinand had the ideal build for a central defender.

He also possessed the poise to be one of the best English players of his era.

The then-record 30 million pound fee United paid for him in 2002 ($34.4 million today) eventually looked like a bargain.

Nemanja Vidic

Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic, left, fights for the ball against Norwich City in 2014. Jon Super / AP Photo

Position: Defender

Experience: 16 years (2000-16)

Years with Manchester United: 8 (2006-14)

Career stats: Captained United from 2011 to 2014. Four times voted onto the Premier League Team of the Year. Twice voted Premier League player of the season.

English league titles: 5 (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting defender

Bottom line: Where Rio Ferdinand was calm, Nemanja Vidic was the aggressor in a central defensive partnership that was the best of the era.

With brute strength and as a supreme header of the ball, the Serb was an opponent to be feared.

Denis Irwin

Manchester United defender Denis Irwin is upended against Chelsea in 1994. Max Nash / AP Photo

Position: Defender

Experience: 21 years (1983-2004)

Years with Manchester United: 12 (1990-2002)

Career stats: Joint-most successful Irish player in history, winning 19 trophies. Twice voted onto Premier League Team of the Year. Voted on to Premier League Team of the Decade (1992 to 2002).

English league titles: 7 (1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1998-99)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting defender

Bottom line: The quiet Irishman was the most dependable of defenders, capable of playing on the left or right flank of the defense.

He also was a hugely dangerous attacking weapon on the overlap and was a master of free kicks, penalties and corners.

Roy Keane

Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane, left, keeps the ball away from Sparta Prague’s Tomas Sivok during a Champions League match in 2004. Jon Super / AP Photo

Position: Midfielder

Experience: 17 years (1989-2006)

Years with Manchester United: 12 (1993-2005)

Career stats: Joint-most successful Irish player in history, winning 19 trophies. Five times voted onto Premier League Team of the Year. Voted onto the Professional Footballers’ Association Team of the Century in 2007.

English league titles: 7 (1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1998-99)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting midfielder

Bottom line: He and Sir Alex Ferguson would later fall out, but Roy Keane was the embodiment of his manager’s relentless approach to success and winning trophies.

Keane was the hardest tackler in the game, afraid of nobody and someone who inspired his teammates to greatness.

Paul Scholes

Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes, right, controls the ball against Queens Park Rangers in 2012. Jon Super / AP Photo

Position: Midfielder

Experience: 20 years, all with Manchester United (1993-2013)

Career stats: Scored 150 goals in over 718 appearances for United. Made third-most appearance in United club history. His 11 Premier League titles are more than any other Englishman.

English league titles: 11 (1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 2 (1998-99, 2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting midfielder

Bottom line: Paul Scholes was small and a childhood asthmatic who looked little like a top-class footballer. But very few Englishmen have had his ability on the ball.

There could be a nasty side to his game as well, and he was a prolific collector of yellow cards.

However, his creativity and control of matches were admired across the globe.

Bobby Charlton

Bobby Charlton, center, at the England national team training site in Roehampton, London, in 1969. Peter Kemp / AP Photo

Position: Midfielder

Experience: 19 years (1956-1975)

Years with Manchester United: 17 (1956-73)

Career stats: World Cup winner with England in 1966. Voted European Footballer of the Year in 1986. Held club record appearance and goal record until overtaken by Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney.

English league titles: 3 (1956–57, 1964–65, 1966–67)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1967-68)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting midfielder

Bottom line: Bobby Charlton was a model for English footballing excellence in his era, a name known across the world.

In an era of heavy pitches and brutal tackling, Charlton glided across the field, first as a winger and then as a creative midfielder, a player ahead of his time.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo, right, against Lyon during a Champions League match in 2008. Jon Super / AP Photo

Position: Forward

Experience: 17 years (2002-present)

Years with Manchester United: 6 (2003-09)

Career stats: Voted Ballon D’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year in 2008. Voted Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year in 2007 and 2008. Won clean sweep of domestic trophies while at United — Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup.

English league titles: 3 (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09)

Champions League/European Cups: 5 (2007-08, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting forward

Bottom line: He might have gone on to true greatness at Real Madrid, but perhaps United saw the best of Cristiano Ronaldo as the winger he began his career as.

Bought as an 18-year-old string bean with boyish hair and braces, he left the club as a goal machine packed with power.

United enjoyed the best of his solo runs and tricks before he later pared down his game in Spain.

George Best

Manchester United footballer George Best in 1965. AP Photo

Position: Forward

Experience: 21 years (1963-84)

Years with Manchester United: 11 (1963-74)

Career stats: Voted European Footballer of the Year in 1968. Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year in 1968. Voted onto the Professional Footballers’ Association Team of the Century in 2007.

English league titles: 2 (1964–65, 1966–67)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1967-68)

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting forward

Bottom line: When it comes to recognizing the most talented player to come from Great Britain, there is rarely much argument about George Best.

A winger who left opponents with “twisted blood,” to use the words of teammate and friend Denis Law, Best practically invented the idea of the pop-star soccer player.

His career, which ended at 26, pretty much, may have been lost to alcoholism, as his life later was, but he decorated the 1960s and early 1970s.

Eric Cantona

Manchester United forward Eric Cantona during a game against Wimbledon in 1997. Max Nash / AP Photo

Position: Forward

Experience: 14 years (1983-97)

Years with Manchester United: 5 (1992-97)

Career stats: Won a league championship in seven of his last eight full seasons as a pro. Voted Overseas Premier League Player of the Decade in 2003. Inducted into inaugural English Football Hall of Fame in 2002.

English league titles: 5 (1991-92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Starting forward

Bottom line: The Frenchman bowed out at just 31, having lost his appetite for the game, but United enjoyed almost five years of a player who turned the club around.

Until Eric Cantona arrived, the team had not won a league title in 26 years, but his strutting arrogance and touches of class proved a catalyst for the club returning to primacy in English football.

David de Gea

Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea makes a save against Everton during an English FA Cup semifinal match in 2016. Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP Photo

Position: Goalkeeper

Experience: 11 years (2008-present)

Years with Manchester United: 8 (2011-present)

Career stats: Four-time winner of United’s Player of the Year award. Five times voted onto PFA Team of the Year. Voted onto FIFPro World XI in 2018.

English league titles: 1 (2012-13)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: The only current player on this all-time Manchester United team, David de Gea has been a lone shining light on a club that has lost its way since Alex Ferguson retired as manager in 2013.

Ferguson made the thin, lanky, awkward young man one of his final signings, and de Gea has become a goalkeeper who often defies logic with his brilliance.

Roger Byrne

Roger Byrne captained United to consecutive league titles until his death at 28. Manchester United / Twitter

Position: Defender

Experience: 7 years, all with Manchester United (1951-58)

Career stats: All 33 England caps were won in consecutive fixtures. Died in Munich air disaster in 1958, alongside seven fellow players. Captained United to consecutive league titles until his death at 28.

English league titles: 2 (1955-56, 1956-57)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: The tragedy of a team that was lost on a snowbound day in West Germany in 1958 robbed the club of one of its finest captains.

A converted forward who dropped back to fullback, Roger Byrne was a player of moral courage and an inspiration for a team of “Busby Babes,” named after manager Matt Busby, and made up of youth products like himself.

Jaap Stam

Manchester United defender Jaap Stam, left, during a Champions League game against Panathinaikos in 2001. Aris Messinis / AP Photo

Position: Defender

Experience: 15 years (1992-2007)

Years with Manchester United: 3 (1998-2001)

Career stats: Voted best defender in the 1998–99 and 1999–2000 UEFA Champions League. Three-times voted onto PFA Team of the Year. Scored just one goal in three seasons as a United player.

English league titles: 3 (1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1998-99)

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: Jaap Stam’s time at United was fleeting, ended prematurely when Alex Ferguson, after a fallout, sold him to Lazio, a move the manager would later admit was a mistake. But Stam made a huge impression during his time with United.

A player who Johan Cruyff once called “a one-man defense” performed that function for United over three seasons in which the league title was collected each time.

Martin Buchan

Martin Buchan played seven seasons with Aberdeen before playing 11 seasons of his 20-year career with Manchester United. Aberdeen FC / Twitter

Position: Defender

Experience: 20 years (1965-85)

Years with Manchester United: 11 (1972-83)

Career stats: Captained United to winning the FA Cup in 1977. Played at two World Cup finals for Scotland. Played alongside brother George for both Aberdeen and United.

English league titles: None

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: The 1970s was a time of only brief successes for United, but this adept, intelligent central defender was hugely reliable, and a leader and organizer at a time of turmoil.

Martin Buchan also was club captain for almost a decade.

Patrice Evra

Manchester United defender Patrice Evra controls the ball during a Champions League match against Olympiakos in 2014. Petros Giannakouris / AP Photo

Position: Defender

Experience: 20 years (1998-2018)

Years with Manchester United: 8 (2006-14)

Career stats: Three times voted onto PFA Team of the Year. Named to the 2008-09 UEFA Team of the Year. Played in five Champions League finals, losing four (2004, 2009, 2011, 2015).

English league titles: 5 (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: The Frenchman, with a big personality and a sense of fun, was a hugely popular player during his time at United.

As someone who started his career as a winger, Patrice Evra was a very useful attacking fullback.

He was part of the superb defense that won the 2008 Champions League.

Bryan Robson

Bryan Robson, left, scores a goal for England in a 1982 World Cup game against France. AP Photo

Position: Midfielder

Experience: 22 years (1975-97)

Years with Manchester United: 13 (1981-94)

Career stats: Captained England on 65 occasions, the third-most in history. Inaugural inductee of the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002. Captained United to win three FA Cup finals.

English league titles: 2 (1992-93, 1993-94)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: He was known as “Captain Marvel” for the inspirational leadership he brought to the club in the 1980s.

When Robson was injured, as was often the case, United was never quite the same team.

He charged from box to box, just as good at tackling as he was at scoring goals, and with the courage of a lion, he was a man who was born for the big occasion.

Duncan Edwards

Duncan Edwards played five years with Manchester United. Manchester United / Facebook

Position: Midfielder

Experience: 5 years, all with Manchester United (1953-1958)

Career stats: Died in Munich air disaster in 1958, alongside seven fellow players. Became the youngest player to play in the Football League First Division at 16 years, 185 days. Won three successive FA Youth Cup finals with United.

English league titles: 2 (1955-56, 1956-57)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: Duncan Edwards died at just 21, a victim of the tragedy at Munich, and English football lost its brightest star.

The midfielder was capable of playing anywhere on the field, and despite his young age, he was a remarkable leader on the field.

Of all of Matt Busby’s Babes, Edwards was the one who the manager thought was his best.

David Beckham

Manchester United midfielder David Beckham celebrates a goal against Zalaegerszeg of Hungary during a UEFA Champions League qualifying match in 2002. Max Nash / AP Photo

Position: Midfielder

Experience: 20 years (1993-2013)

Years with Manchester United: 11 (1992-2003)

Career stats: Twice runner-up for FIFA World Player of the Year. Inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2008. Played 115 times for the England national team.

English league titles: 6 (1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (1998-99)

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: Behind the Hollywood image and pop-star wife was a seriously good player. David Beckham had the energy of a 10,000-meter runner and an iron will to win.

He also was a fantastic taker of free kicks and corners, and his assist provided United with its two goals in the 1999 Champions League final.

Ryan Giggs

Manchester United’s Ryan Giggs, center, jumps to avoid the tackle of Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia, during a Champions League semifinal in 2009. Jon Super / AP Photo

Position: Midfielder/forward

Experience: 24 years, all with Manchester United (1990-2014)

Career stats: The only player to play in each of the first 22 seasons of the Premier League. Most United appearances in club history with 963 matches. Won the most league titles of any player in English football history.

English league titles: 13 (1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 2 (1998-99, 2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: Ryan Giggs made the transition from being the “new George Best” as a teenager to becoming a senior professional who was still a vital part of the team as a 40-year-old.

He began as a winger but by the end was a central midfield player who used his ball skills to become a fine playmaker.

Wayne Rooney

Manchester United Wayne Rooney scores against West Ham during their English FA Cup third round replay soccer match at Old Trafford Stadium, Manchester, England, Wednesday Jan. 16, 2013. Jon Super / AP Photo

Position: Forward

Experience: 17 years (2002-present)

Years with Manchester United: 13 years (2004-2017)

Career stats: Top goalscorer of all time for United, with 253 strikes. Top goalscorer of all time for England, with 53 strikes. England’s most capped outfield player with 120 appearances.

English league titles: 5 (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 1 (2007-08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: The stats suggest Wayne Rooney was one of the all-time greats, but there is a tinge of regret against his name.

He might have been even better than he proved at United, but was prone to losses of form from joining the club as an 18-year-old from Everton.

At his best, though, particularly when in tandem with Ronaldo, Rooney was hugely important to the team, hardworking as well as a prolific scorer.

Ruud van Nistlerooy

Ruud van Nistlerooy celebrates after scoring a goal for the Netherlands against Germany during a Euro match in 2004. Frank Augstein / AP Photo

Position: Striker

Experience: 19 years (1993-2012)

Years with Manchester United: Five years (2001-06)

Career stats: Scored 150 goals in just 219 games for United. Scored in 10 consecutive league games, a Premier League record until broken in 2015. Voted PFA Players’ Player of the Year for the 2001-02 season.

English league titles: 1 (2002-03)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: Few players have been as popular with fans as the Dutchman, who scored goals throughout his five years in Manchester.

Ruud van Nistlerooy was the star of the team that won the 2002-03 Premier League title, but was unlucky to arrive at a club between its best teams of the 1990s and 2000s.

Nevertheless, he left an indelible legacy of goals.

Denis Law

Manchester United forward Dennis Law, right, in a game against Fulham in 1966. Robert Rider-Rider / AP Photo

Position: Forward

Experience: 18 years (1956-74)

Years with Manchester United: 11 (1962-1974)

Career stats: Scored 237 goals in 404 United appearances, making him the club’s third all-time scorer. Joint-holder of all-time goals for Scotland with 30 strikes. Voted European Footballer of the Year in 1964.

English league titles: 2 (1964-65, 1966-67)

Champions League/European Cups: None

All-time Manchester United team role: Reserve

Bottom line: To those of a younger generation, Eric Cantona might have been “The King,” but to fans from the club’s golden era of the 1960s, Denis Law was the first and best monarch of Old Trafford.

A firebrand forward with lightning reflexes, he was one of the best goalscorers of his era, and someone who played the game with a verve that thrilled fans.

Sir Alex Ferguson

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson celebrates after his team’s 1-0 win over Everton in their English Premier League soccer match at Old Trafford Stadium, Manchester, England, Saturday April 23, 2011. Jon Super / AP Photo

Role: Manager

Experience: 39 years (1974-2013)

Years with Manchester United: 27 years (1986-2013)

Career stats: Knighted in 1999 for his services to the game. His United team of 1998-99 won a treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League. His tenure is the longest of any United manager, beating Matt Busby by three years.

English league titles: 13 (1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13)

Champions League/European Cups: 2 (1998–99, 2007–08)

All-time Manchester United team role: Manager

Bottom line: Manchester United has had two great managers. Matt Busby — who managed the club from 1945 to 1969, laid the foundations for the club, and was later knighted — was one. Alex Ferguson was the other.

And it was Ferguson who modernized the club and took it back to the top for its most sustained period of success, from the start of the 1990s until 2013, when he retired at 72.

“Football, bloody hell,” he said after winning his first Champions League with two late goals. “But they never gave in, and that’s what won it.” That spirit embodied the relentless approach to the game that brought Ferguson and United so much success.