I'm sorry to hear that, but he obviously knew his football.
The greatest Manchester United player
- Thread starter Sky1981
- Start date
I'm sorry to hear that, but he obviously knew his football.
He was spot on usually. He called Scholes world class when he was still a striker
Out of interest, i'm taking a guess
Milan - Meazza? Maldini? Baressi?
Juventus - Platini?
Madrid - Di Stefano?
Barcelona - Messi?
Liverpool - Kenny? Gerrard?
Bayern - Beckenbauer, easy
Milan - Meazza? Maldini? Baressi?
Juventus - Platini?
Madrid - Di Stefano?
Barcelona - Messi?
Liverpool - Kenny? Gerrard?
Bayern - Beckenbauer, easy
Best was the best player I have ever seen play live.
I remember Ronaldo's debut for us and it was the first time since Best that there had been a buzz that went through the entire crowd (both sets of fans) whenever Ronaldo got on the ball, I was a Ronaldo fan from that day on.
The bit that gets lost over time with respect to Best is his impudence, complete lack of fear and his mischief. He simply loved to show off and entertain. When I see posters start off comments about Best with he was drunk I know they have absolutely no clue at all.
The difficulty for people not old enough to have seen Best play is that one of the tools that help measure players are the stats. There at times can be an over reliance on stats and we end up losing sight of what truely makes players stand out or great, and that simply is how good they were at playing. Best played in an era before assists were counted or passes forward or completed passes etc. So its hard to tell people what he could do when all there are available are highlight clips and no other ways to measure things. He started his senior career really early but because he finished early some think he had a short career. He had a sequence of 5 out of 6 seasons as Utd's top goal scorer in the league and he did this whilst playing most of the time from out wide. He didnt care which side of the park, he could play left or right it didnt matter. Best created lots of goals, he could pass with either foot, he could shoot with either foot, was good in the air and if he got kicked his main aim was to keep going rather than rolling around like a demented poodle looking for a free kick. But most importantly you never knew what he was going to do next and the majority of the time what he did caused a crowd to get excited.
However the thing with these sorts of things is that personal opinion based on ones own criteria kick in. Some in here think Ronaldo, some Sir Bobby, others Cantona etc and depending on whats important then everyone is right.
But for me Best was absolutely the best we have ever had.
That's not true. When Giggs took the field he was Gods gift in a red shirt
The goals against Tottenham and QPR were sex. Then the goal against Arsenal. He's got to have a shout at the greatest
Milan is easy. Maldini.
Juve, prob go with Scirea.
Madrid has too many greats. Di Stefano though yeah 5 CLs.
Barca again easy. Messi.
Liverpool can feck off.
Bayern yeah Beckenbauer.
Inter prob go with Facchetti/Meazza
Arsenal. Henry?
Napoli would have Maradona.
Ajax gotta be Cruyff.
I think both Best and Charlton sum up United at their best. Swagger, attacking flair, flamboyant personality in Best and home grown, longevity, classy and respectful, winner in Charlton.
That's at least how I see it but I'm sure oppositon fans would disagree.
If I had to pick one it would be Charlton.
That's at least how I see it but I'm sure oppositon fans would disagree.
If I had to pick one it would be Charlton.
Liverpool can feck off
AwesomeLiverpool have had some great players. Dagliesh was probably the best player in the world. An upgrade on Keegan
Baresi would be up there with Maldini. Di Stefano is the standout for Real both for talent and longevity. Inter is difficult, Ronaldo is arguably the most talented but injuries meant he doesn't have longevity in his side, while most who have seen Meazza live are unfortunately dead.
Duncan Edwards.
In terms of ability, sure. But Paolo Maldini symbolises Milan more than anyone does for any other club bar perhaps Messi. Close to quarter of a century with the club, 900 odd games. 5 CLs and what not. He was a part of three great generations at the club. An absolute icon and the first name I'll ever associate with them.
He's also the greatest defender to ever play the game for me. That includes Baresi.
Sir Bobby for me. He is Mr. Manchester United.
I'm surprised not many people are looking at it this way when it comes to Giggsy. I mean he "only" won 2 CLs but that is 2 out of 3 CLs in the club's history, 13/20 league titles, and 4/12 FA Cup titles. Giggs will come to be seen as the second most iconic person associated with United, after SAF.
Milan - A toss-up between Maldini and Baresi with van Basten as a dark horse (lots of AC Milan fans consider him the best); and maybe Rivera should be considered too
Juventus - Platini is the most gifted player (a la Best), Scirea is more synonymous with the club (a la Scirea) and Del Piero is their Giggs - not as talented as the other two but won everything and broke multiple records; Boniperti as a dark horse
Madrid - Di Stefano by a fine margin, then Raul as a club symbol and Ronaldo as their greatest modern player
Barcelona - Messi > Kubala, Xavi, Iniesta (and maybe Ronaldinho with a short but unprecedented peak)
Bayern - Beckenbauer, but it isn't as easy as it sounds, Müller is really up there with him.
Ajax - Cruyff
In my life time, Ronaldo.
All time, Sir Bobby.
All time, Sir Bobby.
Because Maldini along with being such a long serving player for them was also one of the most talented players not only in Milan's history but in the history of the game and has the claim of the greatest defender to have ever played. Hes the best shout for the greatest left back ever as well. When you have a player of that stature in the game spend his entire career with you and be involved, often as the leader in that much amount of success, it's a different ballpark than what Giggs is a part of. This is more Bobby Charlton territory if you are about drawing a United parallel.
In terms of sheer mass, Anderson.
Who gives a shit about awards like that. We won the Treble and none of our players won a thing, the Ballon d'Or, PFA Player of the Year, Footballer Writers Player of the Year. Michael Owen won the bloody Ballon d'Or. Kaka won it for one good game against us. It's just marketing and popularity bollocks.
Charlton was incredibly talented and loved the club, was up until recently our record goal scorer, won the European cup and the world cup! Definitely him there is no question for me.
The best player I've seen with my own eyes on a regular basis is definitely Ronaldo though he's up there in the top 5 of all time with Maradonna Messi etc
The best player I've seen with my own eyes on a regular basis is definitely Ronaldo though he's up there in the top 5 of all time with Maradonna Messi etc
Greatest ever - Sir Bobby Charlton
Best ever - Ronaldo
Best ever - Ronaldo
Every player, and the majority of the fans. It is by far the most important individual trophy a player can get.
None of our players got it on 1999 because there was no standout player on that team, and a few players were equally important. Saying that, Beckham finished second, Keano sixth, with Yorke, Stam, Giggs and Cole being on the list too. On the other side, Rivaldo (who won the award) was the only Barca player on that list. Votes got divided for United players simply because there was no standout player and a few players were almost equal in their contribution.
Kaka winning the award for a good game against us is the biggest bullshit I have heard recently. He was by a significant distance the best player in UCL that season, in addition to leading the goalscoring list on UCL. UCL is the biggest competition so he fully deserved it.
Fixed it for you
Nope. That's incredibly wrong, mate.
Well considering he's not even the best of this generation (the popularity contest of the Ballon D'or these days is immaterial) ,as in a mile behind, then I'd say it's safe to say he isn't even close to being the goat, serious question, how old are you?
Edit: 23. Doesnt invalidate your opinion by any stretch, but you've only ever seen this gen (too young even to appreciate Ronaldinho/R9 etc etc etc). To balance that point I will say I was too young to see Beckenbauer /Puskas etc etc BUT I would say at 43 I've seen more gens of top player (Maradona in particular was a one man team)
But even in your gen, surely you can see that Messi destroys Ronaldo (scores FIFA goals weekly, as opposed to right place at the right time goals)
Last edited:
As a Spurs fan when I think of the greatest players to play for Man Utd I think of Best - to me he sums up what made Man Utd a great club. There is a lot of different opinions in this thread and I think a strong argument could be made for Charlton as well but to me the likes of Duncan Edwards get's put in these things because of a legend built up around him because of his tragic death rather than his influence at the club (in terms of legacy). So for me it's Best first, Charlton second and nobody else comes close.
It's "Ballon D'or France Football" or "Ballon D'or".
I know? (Unless you're being a grammar Nazi/pedant, which is a tad naff considering most of us are at work/on mobiles)
In my time, the greatest is Paul Scholes. I watch the game for beautiful goals, and I don't think I have seen anybody present or past score goals that are aesthetically as pleasing as his goals.
Greatest in my time (25 or so years supporting United) Paul Scholes. Best and Charlton i am sure would be at least on par with Scholes.
Scholes was a great player no doubt about it but he is nowhere near Best or Charlton.
Never watched Best or Charlton week in week out i can't comment just how good they were i never earned that right to be honest.
I lived through R9 and Ronaldinhio's peak. Neither were as good as Cristiano.
Not turning this into a Messi/Ronaldo debate. I watched Ronaldo every week since he joined United. He is the best I've seen. And Ferguson agrees with that.
Will there be a statue of Ronaldo at the front of the stadium when he retires? What about a stand named after him? I would say definitely not. That tells you all you need to know about who the true greats of Man Utd are.
Don't bother, some folk are so obsessed by him that they won't accept anything except "he's the greatest human being ever"
Last edited:
Think you have inserted the wrong quote there!