With his testimonial coming up on Tuesday, Gary Neville has picked an all time XI of players he has played with and what a brilliant team it is.
Having retired earlier in the year following an illustrious career that saw him pick up 8 Premier League titles, 3 FA Cups and a European Cup the defender has played with a number of quality players. One of Fergie’s Fledgling, part of the treble winning side as well as one of our most entertaining sides in recent times (06/07) Neville had a plethora of players to call upon so who made the final cut?
Goalkeeper: Along with a number of duds Neville has been lucky enough to play infront of two of the games finest in Peter Schmeichel and Edwin van der Sar. A tough choice for any so for Neville it came down to this:
The only way I could split them is the fact that Peter did it at Old Trafford for longer. But it is a tough choice.
Defenders: Stam, Pallister, Bruce, Vidic, Ferdinand, Irwin, Evra with just 4 spots in the backline it’s obvious someone will miss out so this will have been a hard for him.
At right back he picked ‘Mr Dependable’ Denis Irwin who ‘rarely put a foot wrong’ allowing him then to pick Patrice Evra at left back who he called ‘a great performer and one of the best in the world’.
Picking his central defensive pairing appeared to cause him a bit of trouble as he initially picked Vidic and Stam but then changed his mind to Rio and Vida. He described Vida as ‘the best I have seen’ and their pairing as ‘the best I have seen in United shirts.’
He still had praise for Stam who he said was massive for us in his time at the club whilst Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister were ‘unbelievable’.
Midfield: Picking the midfield would have been slightly easier as it basically picks itself: David Beckham, Roy Keane, Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs.
The four were poetry in motion with a bite you would not believe. That midfield combination had everything. It had legs, tenacity, passing, dribbling, energy and defensive capabilities.
It’s hard to argue with that!
Forwards: For Gary there was one cert: Cristiano Ronaldo and after that it was debatable. Ronaldo was a constant threat add that and the goals he scored and his place was certified:
The goals he scored for United added to the fact he had so much ability to frighten players means he is a must. For three years from around 2006 to 2009 Cristiano was the best player in the world and that is why he has to be in.
So that leaves one more spot then Ruud, Ole, Cole, Yorke, Cantona, Rooney? So many to choose from but for Neville it was Rooney who he feels should get the kind of respect the players who have retired get citing the fact he has helped United get to 3 CL finals in 4 years. Leaving Cantona out was clearly a hard choice for him though calling the Frenchman ‘The Messiah’!
Tickets for Neville’s testimonial against Juventus are still available, call the club’s ticket office on 0161 868 8000
Funny, apart from Irwin (and maybe Schmeichel), if anyone else picked this starting XI they would be accused of being a fairweather fan and/or born after 1990. Sometimes you have to believe the hype!
You can not deny “poetry in motion with a bite you would not believe.”
Considering he played for us from 92 onwards, u cannot expect many from another era in a team of players he has played with.
I agree and realize that, but it’s pretty common on boards for topics such as these that some people feel older generations were better – even if it was just one decade. There would still be a lot of people giving him trouble for not including Bruce, Cantona, RVN, Robson, Staam, Cole, Yorke, Ole…
Who am I to disagree with Red Nevs suggestions for his best 11 line up, its all subjective and how you view the team.In my opinion most of the areas of the field(3) as broken down are straight forward choices, and not difficult apart from the strikers.The ‘money’ end of the team, where the best players in the world command the highest transfer fee and generally the largest most vocal praise. ?Mark over Ronaldo in comparison to Ruud van Nistelrooy.In the Premier league Ruud scored 95 goals in a 150 games (63%) Ronaldo 84 goals in a 196 games (43.00).In Europe Ruud scored 38 goals in 47 games (80%),Ronaldo scored 16 goals in 55 games (29%).% are based on a 100 games played.
Its all subjective anyway, sorry to join the party so late, mundane things to do. lol.
Brilliant pick, though i would’ve picked neville ahead of irwin and nistelrooy ahead of ronaldo… becks, scholes, keane and giggs is magic…
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