54. David May

Signed from: Blackburn Rovers (£1,200,000), July 1994
Debut: 2-0 win vs Queens Park Rangers, August 20th 1994
League Record: 68 games (+17 as sub), 6 goals
Sold to: Burnley (free transfer), summer 2003

With Steve Bruce well into his mid 30s, Ferguson’s first attempt to find a replacement at centre back was David May.

Like Brucie, May was an uncomplicated player. As a child, he’d supported Manchester City and went for a trials. However, he felt their approach to young players wasn't for him, and he headed North to the more homely Blackburn Rovers, at the time going nowhere fast in the old Second Division. By the time local businessman Jack Walker’s millions had pushed them into the top flight in 1992, May was established alongside ex-United star Kevin Moran at the back and they finished runners-up to us in 1993/94.

All the same, it was still a surprise (to me, at least) when he was given the chance to return to Manchester. Initially played at right back, he lost out to the emergence of Gary Neville and he didn't become a regular starter until 1996/97, after Bruce had wandered off to Birmingham City. To his credit, May was in fine form, chipping in with the odd goal and getting a call up to the England squad.

However, injuries then cost him a first team place, and he was pushed further out by the signings of further defenders with a more sophisticated style than May’s typically English blood-and-guts approach. In the treble season, he barely featured at all until the last few weeks, where (to his credit) he came in and did a steady job. To save players for the Champions League final, he started in the FA Cup final and helped us to a easy 2-0 win over Newcastle.

He was, apparently, under consideration to start the CL final due to suspensions to others, but in the end only made the bench, which resulted in him picking up a medal despite not playing any European football that season. His lasting legacy remains his crafty positioning of himself in the pictures of celebrations from this game (see above), and that season ensured United fans had the chant “David May, superstar/got more medals than Shearer” – two league championships, two FA Cups and a Champions League medal, for the record.

After that, he was restricted to no more than a couple of showings a season due to a series of injuries. By the time he was finally shunted out to Burnley, he was 33 and had been kept around a bit too long. By all accounts, something of a Jack the Lad in his younger days, he currently co-hosts a show on MUTV.

53. Colin McKee

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 0-0 draw vs Coventry City, May 8th 1994
League Record: That was his only game.
Sold to: Kilmarnock (with Neil Whitworth for a combined £350,000), September 1994

Not much to say about Colin - I certainly don't remember him as anything but a regular scorer for the reserves.

He got his one run out in an end of season dead rubber notable only for being the last time Bryan Robson played at Old Trafford. Returning to his native Scotland, a three year spell at Kilmarnock was followed by a series of short-term spells at several small Scottish clubs, never playing more than a handful of games at any, and he retired from the game in 2001.

52. Ben Thornley

Signed from: youth team

Debut: 2-2 draw vs West Ham United (as sub), February 26th 1994
League Record: One game (+8 as sub)
Sold to: Huddersfield Town (free transfer), May 1998

The first (but certainly not the last) of the “Class of 1992” to appear here who didn’t end up with lengthy career at United, Ben Thornley picked up many positive notices, but was never helped by the fact he played left wing – a position more than aptly covered by Ryan Giggs and Lee Sharpe.

His chances dived even further when his leg was broken not long after his debut in a reserve game against Blackburn - he later sued the other player involved, a matter settled out of court. That pretty much ended any real progression, though the fact he was still in the squad as late as 1998 would suggest Fergie had some faith in him working out. But it was not to be, and he was packed off to Huddersfield Town. Though the team looked an outside bet for the Premier League at one point, they were instead relegated in 2001 and Thornley left to play over the border for Aberdeen. From there, it was a disappointing slide into the lower divisions and eventually the non-league, leaving us with a sad sense of a talent lost through matters out of the player's control.

Apropos of nothing, his brother has worked as a masseur to the England national team.

51. Roy Keane

Signed from: Nottingham Forest (£3,750,000),
Debut: 2-0 win vs Norwich City, August 15th 1993.
League Record: 309 games (+17 as sub), 33 goals
Sold to: contract terminated (November 2005), subsequently signed for Celtic

A legend, though he probably wouldn't like me saying that. With Bryan Robson finally approaching the end of the road, we signed possibly the only man capable to taking over the same role. I'm not sure anybody in this list will come close to the levels Roy Keane strived to achieve his goals on the field: he didn't care about making friends or being liked by anyone – all that mattered was victory.

Despite the fact he would eventually become one of the most highly-regarded players in world football, young Roy was a late starter. At 19, he was still playing in his native Cork before Brian Clough brought him over to Nottingham Forest. Months later, he played in the 1991 FA Cup final, though ended up on the losing side.

By 1993, though, Clough had lost his battle with the bottle and Forest were relegated. Keane was ambitious and wanted to be playing at the highest level: Blackburn (at that time) matched that level of ambition and he looked nailed on to join them until a last-minute Fergie swoop saw him come to the right side of the A666. His joining us would be immortalised in the terrace classic ‘Keano’s Magic Hat’.

With the departure of Paul Ince in 1995, Keano was free to establish total dominance of the midfield, a position he would maintain for the best part of a decade, and when Eric retired in 1997, he took over the captaincy too. In this role, he took a more traditional approach – offering bollocings to teammates when they were needed and inspiring through sheer drive and energy.

His importance to the team was reflected in his first season as skipper, when a serious long-term injury resulted in a serious tilt at the title running out of steam. He came back the next year stronger and hungrier for missing out - leading to his greatest moment in a red shirt.

It was the 1999 Champions League semi-final against Juventus, who at that time had stars like Davids, Zidane and Del Piero at the top of their game. The first leg at Old Trafford had ended 1-1 and within no time at their place, we were 2-0 down and looking dead. Keano had had enough, took charge and scored the first goal in our 3-2 comeback. What made this more remarkable was that he picked up a booking that meant he would miss the final, but instead of moping, he played harder and better than ever.

The attitude and commitment that saw him win so much at United also led to one of his most infamous moments, when prior to the 2002 World Cup, he criticised the training facilities organised for the Irish team. Convinced management saw the whole affair as little more than a jolly, he stormed out after a bust-up with manager Mick McCarthy. Around the same time, he criticised sections of the United support of just turning up for the experience and not getting behind the team. A lot of the traditional fanbase found it hard to argue.

Three years later, his forthright views got him in trouble again. After we took a 4-1 kicking at Middlesbrough, he went on the in-house TV channel and laid into various players, not holding back one bit. Ferguson found this unacceptable and the subsequent rift between the two led to his leaving the club. To give Keane his dues, everything he said was spot on and he later stated he went to each player he criticised and explained why he said what he had. Though he was past his peak at the time, he was still the captain and a major influence on the team and we've not had that kind of box-to-box midfielder since.

Following managerial spells at Sunderland (mixed fortunes) and Ipswich Town (not good), he’s currently seen as a pundit for ITV’s coverage of England and Champions League games, where he’s often amusing with his usual straight talking.

50. Keith Gillespie

Signed from: Youth team

Debut: 2-0 win vs Bury (FA Cup tie), January 5th 1993. Scored once
League Record: Three games (+6 as sub), one goal
Sold to: Newcastle United (valued at £1,000,000 in an exchange deal), January 1995

Direct winger in the old fashioned tradition (i.e. he kept running at the full back, putting a cross in on the occasions he beat his man), Keith Gillespie scored on his debut and two years later got his only Premiership goal with a fine effort against Newcastle. They were obviously impressed as not long later he was playing for them.

I personally had high hopes for Gillespie and was disappointed to see him leave, more so when we sold Andrei Kanchelskis a few months later, as I'd not seen enough of David Beckham at that point to know he was more than capable of holding the right wing. What is interesting to wonder is that if Keith hadn't left United, whether he’d have got the chance on the right wing that was given to Beckham and making the late 90s a very different tale. Certainly his valuation of a million pounds was very high for a (relative) novice in 1995, and shows how much faith Keegan had in him.

He went on to have a fairly successful career in Geordieland and then Blackburn, where he teamed up with Mark Hughes, as well as being a regular for Northern Ireland. His last significant role was at Sheffield United, where he helped them gain promotion to the Premiership in 2006. While up there, he managed to get sent off within seconds of coming on as a sub, for elbowing an opposition player in the face while he ran into position. Bizarre.

Still playing in the League of Ireland as of 2012.

49. Eric Cantona

Signed from: Leeds United (£1,200,000), November 1992
Debut: 2-1 win vs Manchester City (as sub), December 6th 1992
League Record: 142 games (+1 as sub), 64 goals
Sold to: Retired, summer of 1997

The beginning of time, for this fan. Recently, one Red Issue columnist commented on one of our current players praying before kick off by saying "there’s only one God round here, and his name is Eric". Damn right. 

It’s strange to think that in early 1992, Eric Cantona was almost washed up. Though a French international, his temper had alienated him from several clubs in his homeland. Insulted by Sheffield Wednesday manager Trevor Francis’ request for a “trial”, he instead went to Leeds United, playing a minor (though subsequently exaggerated) role in their 1992 title win. 

The Yorkshire fans took to Eric quickly – perhaps enjoying a bit of exotic flair alongside the likes of Lee Chapman and Chris Fairclough.  He began the next season with a bang, scoring a hat trick in the Charity Shield against Liverpool and another triple (the first in the Premier League) against Spurs. But all was not well – Cantona’s individualism not mixing well with the rigid long ball game favoured by Howard Wilkinson.
Then came a fateful phone call in December 1992. Leeds contacted United about buying Denis Irwin (laughable, given they let him go for nothing in 1986), an obvious non-starter. However, either Alex Ferguson or United chairman Martin Edwards asked about Cantona – the word came back a deal might be on, and in quick time, United had a new forward. 

His impact was close to instant. At the time, we were struggling in the league, not scoring enough goals and looking like the failure to clinch the title the year before has sucked the fight from the players. Eric came along and galvanised everything. Linking well with Mark Hughes, he was given the chance to express himself with a freedom denied to him before. It's not an exaggeration to say things clicked almost overnight, as we won eight of the ten games following his debut.

More importantly, Manchester welcomed the man with open arms and he felt right at home. United fans recognise genius when we see it, and in Eric we knew we had someone with that ability to do the complete unexpected, a player to make you gasp in a way we hadn't seen since for some years. So highly did we (still do) value him, that he became "The King", a title only given once before, to Denis Law. As much as his ability was his attitude - one of his team-mates described him as "collar turned up, back straight, chest stuck out, he glided into the arena as if he owned the fucking place". He was unlike most footballers, living in a modest semi-detached house, taking an interest in art and cinema and capable of conversations beyond the usual "over the moon" variety.

In the 1993/94 season, he got even better, scoring vital goals as we held onto the title and won the FA Cup as well - Eric scoring two penalties in our 4-0 smashing of Chelsea. Our team that season has gone down in some legend to representing the peak of attacking football in the Fergie years: with Giggs, Sharpe and Kanchelskis running riot on the wings, both scoring and providing many goals. 

The next year seemed to be more of the same, until the famous night at Selhurst Park, when after being the subject of rough treatment from Crystal Palace defender Richard Shaw, Eric lashed out and was sent off by the referee. Trudging off the field, a Palace fan elected to charge down the stand shouting abuse only to be met with a flying kick from the King. For this, he was banned for nine months and United's season resulted in zilch. 

It was a strange time for us, and when Hughes, Ince and Kanchelskis were sold off that summer, some of us questioned Alex Ferguson's sanity. What we also didn't know at the time was that Eric was feeling fed up and almost ready to quit: it took a visit from Fergie to Paris to convince him to return to Manchester. 

And how glad we would be that he did. Made captain of a team where the likes of Gary Neville, Nicky Butt and David Beckham were now regulars, he was a strong influence and led from example: at the climax of the campaign we had a run where we seemed to win most games 1-0 with the goal from Eric. He repeated this trick in the cup final, slamming in a late winner against Liverpool in a moment that won't be forgotten by reds anywhere. 

The next season, though we won the league again, he didn't seem quite himself. Perhaps at 31, he realised he wasn't at his peak anymore. His retirement that summer was a huge shock, but in hindsight I can only respect his decision. He'd fallen out of love with the game and wanted to go do all other things with his life. In four and a half years, he'd helped turn a club of under-achievers into the most dominant club in England. There have been players before and after who have had more talent, but very few have won the hearts of the fans as much as Eric. 

Nowadays, he’s continuing to develop his acting skills on stage and screen (including the brilliant Looking For Eric) and working towards getting New York Cosmos back off the ground. And he’s still the sexiest fucker who walks the Earth.

48. Nicky Butt

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 3-0 win vs Oldham Athletic (sub), November 21st 1992
League Record: 210 games (+60 as sub), 21 goals
Sold to: Newcastle United (£2,500,000), July 2004

Another promotion from the famous 1992 youth team, Nicky was a Manchester lad brought up in the Gorton district – a tough area reflected in the man’s no-nonsense style. There have been many more talented lads to put on the shirt, but none could better Butt’s commitment.

His debut came at a point where we were in a major slump of form – any momentum from finishing second in 1991/92 seemed to have vanished in the first season of the Premiership as we went seven league games without winning. The 3-0 win over local rivals Oldham steadied the ship before the next entry would arrive to change just about everything.

Nicky began to establish himself in 1994/95, after the departure of Bryan Robson saw him move to become first in line for a place when injuries hit the main midfield duo. When Paul Ince left in the summer, he stepped in and looked very impressive through 1995/96: aggressive in the tackle, good on the ball and a tidy passer, he looked set to develop into the equal of his predecessor.

It never *quite* worked out for him, sadly, which seems an odd thing to say about someone who made over 250 appearances and played for England 39 times. Yet he was rarely ever a first choice at United, always getting his 30 or so games a season, rarely letting anyone down - it’s a cliché to say, but at just about any other club in England, he’d have been a crucial part of the team.

He did his part in the Treble glories of 1999 - suspensions saw him start the Champions League final, where he did his best in holding the line against Bayern Munich until we made our heroic last dash rush to victory.

As the 21^st century rolled through its initial years, he found himself pushed down the pecking order, though he still managed to play well enough at the 2002 World Cup to earn plaudits from Pele, of all people. By 2005, he was sick of losing out to people who should never have been allowed near a red shirt and he was put on the transfer list at his request. He moved to Newcastle, where he put in plenty of hard work, including becoming club captain, before retiring in 2011 after a short spell playing out in China.

47. David Beckham

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 1-1 draw vs Brighton and Hove Albion (as sub, League Cup tie), September 23rd 1992
League Record: 237 games (+28 as sub), 62 goals
Sold to: Real Madrid (£25,000,000), July 2003

I have a feeling a lot of people would be surprised at how early he made his debut – it wasn’t for another three years that he cracked the first team after Andrei Kanchelskis was sent packing.

At first, he wasn’t the most exciting prospect of his year group. I remember seeing pictures that suggested if he stepped foot on Old Trafford on a gusty night, he’d get blown away and end up in the canal. Not that he had much chance of getting a game in the first place, as Andrei Kanchelskis had the right wing sewn up but when the Ukrainian got injured at the end of 94/95, young David (who had gone through a short spell on loan at Preston to get some pitch time) made a couple of showings and was obviously impressive enough to take the now-available right wing spot the following season.

Though he missed out on making the 1996 England Euro Championship squad, the first game of the subsequent season saw that his star was on a rapid upward trajectory. Against Wimbledon, he chipped their keeper from inside his own half – goal of the season right away, and setting up his reputation for spectacular long-range goals.

Around this time was the fateful day Victoria Adams rocked up at Old Trafford to do the half-time prize draw. She met young David, setting him down a path where he became far better known to the world as a “celebrity” than a footballer. He managed to keep the balance throughout most the late 90, but in the end the media attention seemed to become too much. Newspaper reports would be about his haircut and clothing rather than his footballing exploits.

Eventually, he fell out with Fergie, not helped by being hit by a boot kicked by the boss in a moment of fury, at was even dropped from the team for a spell in 2002/03. We sold him off to Real Madrid, where he did OK before electing to waste the rest of his career hacking around the US league, intercut with two loan spells at Milan. One of these saw him come up against us in a Champions League tie, where he received a deserved warm reception.

In the final reckoning, he should have spent more time at United. And yet, on the other hand, the guy who took his #7 jersey would end up doing a pretty good job in replacing him...

46. Gary Neville

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 0-0 draw vs Torpedo Moscow (UEFA Cup tie, as a sub), September 16th 1992
League Record: 380 games (+20 as sub), 5 goals
Sold to: Retired, January 2011

After Ryan Giggs, the second of the famous 1992 FA Youth Cup winning team to make the first team. There’s a fair few more to come…

For his debut, the first leg at Old Trafford, he was probably only thrown in due to the then-foreigner rule severely limiting our options: even Neil Webb, Danny Wallace and Lee Martin got games in these two ties, which ended with us being beaten on penalties in the second leg in Moscow. That game, due to being in Russia, was on fairly early on a weekday afternoon and I remember coming home from school to catch most of it. I think Bruce and Pallister missed the vital pens, though why Pally was taking one is lost to the mists of time.

After that, he spent most the next two years learning his trade in the reserves before taking his chance when Paul Parker’s injury problems saw him drop out of contention. He impressed enough to get into Terry Venables’ England team within a few months of establishing himself, and looked impressive at the 1996 European Championships.

Around this time, he’d formed a superb partnership on the right flank with our next entry that benefited club and country. Nev also had a knack for hurling a throw-in a considerable distance, which proved useful. What he never seemed to have was much respect from fans of other teams: he was certainly the subject of much piss-taking due to his ultra-serious nature. It was hard to imagine Gary out on the tiles on a Saturday night, knocking back £100 cocktails and copping off with random ladies.

However, there's not been many other players as committed to the Red cause than him and nobody in the team enjoyed success more than him. Winning against Liverpool usually brought this out to the hilt and his enjoyment at a late winner against the old enemy cost him a hefty fine from the FA, which he may have felt was worth it anyways.

At the end, his legs had well and truly gone and in 2010/11 he was lucky to stay on the pitch in games at Stoke and West Brom after some bad tackles. The latter game also saw him somehow avoid giving away a penalty, a moment that had Baggies fans justifiably enraged. Credit to the man, he knew the game was up and announced his retirement from playing within days. Since then, he’s become an articulate pundit for Sky Sports, a job he shares after he strangely went to work on the coaching team for England.

45. Dion Dublin

Signed from: Cambridge United (£1,000,000), August 1992
Debut: 1-2 loss vs Sheffield United (as sub), August 15th 1992
League Record: 4 games (+8 as sub), 2 goals
Sold to: Coventry City (£2,000,000), summer of 1994

Hard (ahem) to mention Dion without making reference to his manhood looking like “a tin of vim with an orange at the end”. So the legend goes, anyways, but by all accounts he may have been the (cough) 'longest' player we've had. The first new signing of the Premiership era as well.

An odd signing on some levels, Dion had been a big star in a Cambridge side that nearly made the top flight. His role in the team, essentially, was to get his lovely smooth head onto the end of the numerous long balls hoofed up the pitch. A record of one goal in three was apparently enough to convince Fergie to splash out a million, the fee mostly covered by selling Mark Robins to Norwich – the club Dion incidentally started his career at.

Following two defeats and a draw at the opening of the 1992/93 season, he was thrown into the fray down at Southampton and rewarded us with a late winning goal to get a first victory on the board. Instant (even in minor) place in United history assured.

Two games later, against Crystal Palace, Dion wound up breaking his leg, which pretty much ended his career with us, as a few months later someone else came in struck up a winning partnership up top with Mark Hughes. He made a few showings over the next two years, but was mainly held in reserve. He did manage to score a vital goal in the Spring of 1994 against Oldham, but understandably wanted a chance to prove himself and that summer, moved on to Coventry City. You have to give credit to the management for getting such a high fee for a player who'd hardly set the world on fire at United. All the same, by being such all-round top guy, he always got a good reception on his returns to Old Trafford.

As it turned out, Dion proved his money’s worth by becoming a prolific striker for the Sky Blues and subsequently did the business for Aston Villa too – he could also count himself unlucky not to make the squad for the 1998 World Cup, being joint top Premiership scorer that season. After short spells at Leicester City and Celtic, he finished up back where he started at Norwich, having moved down the pitch to play at centre-back.

Nowadays, he’s often seen on Match of the Day 2, when he’s not inventing musical instruments. Also worth pointing out that despite what some people might say, his dad didn’t play drums in Showaddywaddy. That was the magnificently named Romeo Challenger.

44. Ian Wilkinson

Signed from: youth team
Debut: 1-1 draw vs Cambridge United (League Cup time), October 9th 1992
League Record: None – his debut was his only game
Sold to: Stockport County (free transfer), summer of 1993

First player who I could find no picture of online. Enigma!

Wilkinson got his single run-out due to Peter Schmeichel being out of the country playing for Denmark and usual back-ups Jim Leighton and Gary Walsh being crocked. So, fourth choice keeper, then. No matter, United drew 1-1 and went through to the next round having won the first leg 3-0. With Schmeichel very rarely injured, the re-signing to the experienced Les Sealey and Walsh still around, he was never likely to get anywhere near the first eleven again.

Released on a free, he eventually wound up at Crewe where he played a handful of games in their 1994 promotion to the third tier before injury forced early retirement from the game. Wiki sez he went into academia, eventually graduating as a Doctor of Physiotherapy, but given it also adds he plays Crown Green Bowls (!) at county level, I’m a tad sceptical. If it’s true, though - kudos to him!

43. Paul Parker

Signed from: Queens Park Rangers (£1,700,000), August 1991
Debut: 2-0 win vs Notts County, August 17th 1991
League Record: 100 games (+5 as sub), 1 goal
Sold to: Derby County (free transfer), summer of 1996

The final part of the finest backline United had seen in many years, Paul Parker slotted in at right back alongside Dennis Irwin, Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister, all playing in front of Peter Schmeichel. Parker was also the first to lose his place in the first team, with injuries breaking him down while only in his early 30s.

After serving his first years with Fulham, Parker moved to the top flight when he signed for QPR. Gaining a reputation for his pace and man-marking skills, he made the 1990 World Cup squad and eventually ousted Gary Stevens for the right back position. Sadly, he may be best remembered by many for deflecting a West German free kick over Peter Shilton and into the net. What’s overlooked is that it was his cross that set up Gary Lineker’s equaliser.

No matter, he’d looked sharp in Italy and United were sniffing around even then only for an injury to get in the way. A year later, he was back to fitness and we brought him up North, allowing Dennis Irwin to move over to the left at the expense of poor old Clayton Blackmore. In a way, it’s a surprise he wanted to move, as not too long before, he’d been put through some horrendous racist abuse from the more idiotic United fans.

The move did nothing to help his England career, though: after the 1990 World Cup, new manager Graham Taylor was clearly not a fan, preferring the likes of Lee Dixon for the number two shirt.

No matter – after a slightly stop-start debut season, Parker came back strong in the autumn of 1992, after missing the first few months. Sharp in the tackle with speed to match the vast majority of left wingers he came up against, Parker was a key part of a superb defence. His one league goal came that season, in a 4-1 thumping of Spurs when he picked up the ball inside his own half, ran at a retreating defence, played a one-two with Brian McClair and slotted it away in style. Good example of making your few moments in front of goal look as good as possible.

1993/94 was Parker’s best season: the aforementioned back five only missed seven games between them all as we took the League and Cup double. He looked especially good given he was playing behind Andrei Kanchelskis, a man (unlike Ryan Giggs) who never let the idea of “defensive duties” get in the way of his game.

And that was nearly the end of it, as far as his first team career went. Injuries took their toll, with only one start in the league through 1994/95 and Fergie give a chance to a young local lad we’ll be coming across as entry #46. To make matters worse, his replacement also had a kid brother who wasn’t too bad either, meaning by 1996, Parker was well down the pecking order: he didn’t play enough games to qualify for a third Championship medal and wasn’t in the cup final squad.

Despite that, there was still time that year for one last moment of glory: brought off the bench in a FA Cup tie at Reading, within minutes he’d hit a long range screamer in, though whether it was a shot or a mis-hit cross, only he knows.

Released on a free that summer, he had short spells at Sheffield United and Derby, before finishing his pro career acting as defensive cover at Chelsea. Retired at the age of 33, he’s since done some media work and writes a football column for Yahoo!

42. Peter Schmeichel

Signed from: Brondby (£505,000), August 1991
Debut: 2-0 win vs Notts County, August 17th 1991
League Record: 292 games
Sold to: Sporting Lisbon (free transfer), June 1999

If I'm going to be brutally honest, by my reckoning there's only been three players who crop up in this list who could were without doubt the best in their position in the world. Peter Schmeichel is the first - in simple terms, throughout most the 1990s, he was the best goalkeeper in the business.

United hadn't had a really exceptional goalie for decades. Harry Gregg, signed in 1958, was at the time the most expensive 'keeper in the world, and was voted as the best at that summer's World Cup in Sweden, but injuries prevented him taking part in the glory days of the 1960s. Alex Stepney had been reliable and injury prevented Gary Bailey from maturing into his peak years.

Brian Clough knew how important the man between the sticks was to winning the league: so he bought the best in Peter Shilton. Initially, Fergie struggled with the signing of Jim Leighton failing, and Les Sealey only providing a stopgap. By signing Schmeichel, he'd made a huge move in our exceptional run of success throughout the rest of the decade.

Though we through the League away in his first season, the Big Dane was blameless, keeping plenty of clean sheets and introducing a new attack option with his long throws from goal that would often clear the half-way line. After a short spell of adjustment, he was soon confident in dealing with high balls aimed to the likes of John Fashanu and Mick Harford, his massive frame meaning he could clean out opponents and teammates alike in claiming the ball.

He had an exceptional summer that year, playing a big part in Denmark's unlikely claiming of the European Championships. Bringing that winning mentality back, he played every game in our first Premiership success. Over the next few years, he was untouchable as the best and was always first choice for United, with only a few minor injuries getting the way.

On several occasions, he would throw himself forward to try to save a game. He even managed a goal against Rotor Volgograd in the 1995/96 UEFA Cup, though it was in vain as we went out on away goals. Later that season, he put in what may have been his finest performance. Playing at Newcastle, then our big title rivals, he took everything they threw at him, pulling off a number of sublime saves to secure a vital 1-0 win.

1998/99 would turn out to be his last season. Midway through, he began to look a little jaded and some uncharacteristic mistakes saw him given a small break to take a holiday and get his head together. He came back on top form and played a huge part in our treble triumph. His penalty save from Dennis Bergkamp in the FA Cup semi-final replay lives long in the memory and in the Champions League final a few weeks later, he bombed forward in the last minutes to cause enough confusion to enable an equaliser.

Shortly after, he went off to Portugal, claiming he wasn't up to hectic standard of English football anymore. However, he returned to play for Aston Villa and then, somewhat unfortunately, Manchester City. That left a bad taste in a lot of Red's mouths, especially when he celebrated a win against us.

Despite that, it's interesting that in subsequent media appearances, he's always referred to United as "us". And he remains the best keeper we've had in my lifetime, just about edging a certain Dutchman far, far down the line.

41. Andrei Kanchelskis

Signed from: Shakhytor Donetsk (£650,000), March 1991
Debut: 0-3 loss vs Crystal Palace, May 11th 1991
League Record: 96 games (+27 as sub), 28 goals
Sold to: Everton (£5,000,000), August 1995

The first signing from overseas on our list, and a hark back to different times. Nowadays, when we sign a player, we can look on youtube and usually see a showreel of their best moments. Back in 1991, when we signed some fellow from the Ukraine, I would wager the vast majority of United fans were completely in the dark about him.

In fact, I think the first I knew of him was playing Manchester United: Europe where he appeared in our squad list, only with his first name spelt "Andrej". His actual debut passed me by - Fergie stuck on most our reserves in order to keep the first team fresh for the awaiting Cup Winners Cup final. He must have made a good impression, however, as he was signed up and we had our first proper right-winger since Gordon Strachan had been sold off two years prior.

While Strachan was a winger who dribbled, jinxed and relied on his guile, Andrei Kanchelskis pretty much relied on his main asset: a sprinters pace. Not many, if any, caught Andrei when he got going, and unlike the similarly rapid Franz Carr at Nottingham Forest, he could actually put in a decent cross when he finally ran out of turf to run across.

If we had won the league in 1992, he would have played a big part in it when he scored the winning goal (a superb volley) at Old Trafford against Southampton that Spring. The wheels were wobbling and his goal slightly eased worried minds. Alas, it would be for nothing.

The next season, Kanchelskis struggled for a starting place when Lee Sharpe regained fitness to take the left wing spot with Ryan Giggs shifting over to the right: nearly half his appearances that campaign came from the bench, though he still managed to score some vital goals at QPR and Norwich, the latter in a memorable game where we put the Canaries (our title rivals at that time) firmly in their place.

1993/94 saw him established in the team, however, and he played a big part in our first double winning season. With him and Giggs as our wing options, opposition teams may never have faced two different forms of devastation. Kanchelskis was also one player who profited regularly from the huge throw-outs from our goalkeeper at the time (who'll be our next entry). A goal at QPR that season saw the ball launched from our box to the half-way line, where Kanchelskis carried it the rest of the way and slotted it away. An assist from the 'keeper didn't seem so far fetched back then.

The next season he got better, adding goalscoring to his skillset. The highlight of his time with us came in 1994/95, when he put away a hat-trick in a 5-0 win over Manchester City that helped cure the pain of the 5-1 hammering they gave us in 1989. We could do with another Andrei-esque perfomance in the near future...

But what should have been the next step in Kanchelskis' rise in United's Hall of Fame turned out to be one of our last memories of him. By the end of the season, his relationship with Ferguson had turned very sour - rumours of agents pushing for a move to get a big payday would later do the rounds - and he was moved on to Everton that summer, not long after they'd beat us in the FA Cup final.

Early in his time there, he suffered a serious injury inflicted in a game against, inevitably, us. Once fit again, he managed to score plenty of goals but was soon on his way out, beginning a series of moving to various clubs (including a short spell at Man City) without ever really settling again.

Sadly, a story of talent perhaps very badly advised. That said, the guy who took his place on the right wing didn't turn out too bad...

40. Paul Wratten

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 2-1 win vs Wimbledon (sub), April 2nd 1991
League Record: No full games, two appearances as sub.
Sold to: Released, May 1992, subsequently signed for Hartlepool United.

Another man with a fleeting first team career. I can't remember anything about Paul Wratten, but I gather injuries hampered the midfielder's time with us. His two showings off the bench came in dead-rubber games at the end of the 1990/91 season, when the league was long out of reach and we were focusing on other matters.

After he was let go, he was picked up by Hartlepool United, thus returning to his native North East. He seemed to have settled into a first team role by 1993/94 but a change of management, when ex-United utility player David McCreery took over, saw him quickly moved on. With his professional career over, he moved on to non-league outfit Bishop Auckland.

39. Neil Whitworth

Signed from: Wigan Athletic (£45,000), June 1990
Debut: 1-1 draw vs Southampton, March 13th 1991
League Record: Just the debut.
Sold to: Kilmarnock (£265,000), September 1994

From the guy who's played the most for United, to somebody who turned out just the once. Neil Whitworth made his first league game aged only 17 in a Wigan shirt, back in the days they were hanging round the lower divisions.

He obviously made a good impression on someone watching, as a few months later he was off to Old Trafford. Less than a year later, just before his 19th birthday, he filled in at right back down at Southampton. However, centre back was his usual role and with Pallister and Bruce pretty much ever-present, he was never likely to add to his one showing. Loan spells throughout 1992 and 1993 saw him gather enough experience to ensure he had suitors when the time came to move on.

On leaving United, he had a nomadic career in Scotland and England, never settling in one place for long. Still very good friends with Lee Sharpe, apparently.

38. Ryan Giggs

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 0-2 loss at Everton (as sub), March 2nd 1991
League Record: 555 games (+117 as sub), 114 goals
Sold to: retired, May 19th 2014

The first man we’ve come across who is still playing pro football, and still at the top level at that. Ryan Giggs is a freak of the modern age in terms of his longevity and fitness. It’s amazing to think there are plenty of United fans out there (i.e. those a couple of years younger than me) who can’t remember a time Giggs wasn't in the first team.

His backstory is well known, especially the part about him training with City until the newly arrived Fergie set about overhauling the youth policy. A United fan from Salford, though born in Wales, the-then Ryan Wilson didn’t need much convincing when we finally got the wherewithal to come knocking. His potential was impossible to miss, by all accounts, and he made his debut not long after his 17th birthday. A few months later, he got his first start in the Manchester Derby, taking the credit for a Colin Hendry own goal.

The next season, with Lee Sharpe out injured, he claimed the left wing spot along with the #11 shirt and after Sharpe left in 1996, he was pretty much unopposed in the position for the next ten years, barring a Swedish rival for the Treble season.

In those early days, he became the poster boy for the early Premiership period, advertising all manner of things (veggie sausages spring to mind) and the club stuck his face on just about anything they could sell. He’d be eventually replaced in this role by some kid from That London playing on the other wing.

Throughout all his 20 years in the team, he’s rarely had the absolute backing of the entire support: after a brilliant 1993/94 season where he scored 19 goals, he struggled the next campaign and from then on, he always seemed to have some sections of the crowd on his back. It’s also unlikely he’s been that many people’s favourite player, but he always had the knack of answering critics in spectacular style.

There was, of course, his wonder goal in the 1999 FA Cup Semi-Final replay, where he picked up a wayward Arsenal pass near the half way line and kept running till he nearly hit the touchline, at which moment he smashed it into the top of the net.

But there was also a sublime performance at Juventus that came in one of the many dips in form a player gets over two decades. At a ground we’d never found it easy, he ran riot, scoring twice in a 3-0 victory. At the time, his form really was suffering and it was the perfect reply to the critics.

Yes, there have been spells of indifferent form where he seemed to spend too much with his hands on his hips as a pass went astray, and that open goal miss in the FA Cup against Arsenal in 2003 was inexcusable: I was in London that day, which happened by chance to be when the huge anti-war march took place. Sorry to say, the enormity of the event was far overshadowed by our defeat and wondering how the fuck Giggsy had put it over the bar when all he needed to do was pea-roll it into an unguarded goal. Such is football.

But in all likelihood, he’ll still be playing top class football at the age of 39, still patrolling the wing and occasionally twisting a full-back apart like nobody else can. He’s won more English league titles than anyone body else as well as four FA Cups and a couple of European Cups into the bargain. With other 900 first team games, he's played more for Manchester United than anybody else and certainly just about every England coach from Graham Taylor onwards has wished he’d been born in England rather than Wales.

More recently, there were revelations about his personal life that has sullied his reputation as a human being. Separating the man from his art, difficult as it may be, leaves someone who deserves his place amongst the greats of the club. It’ll be a strange day when the #11 shirt has something other than “Giggs” above it.

* May 2014 edit: after a season as player-coach under the somewhat underwhelming reign of David Moyes, Giggs took charge for the last four games of the season. In the second-to-last, a home game against Hull City, he brought himself off the bench, set up a goal and nearly scored another. That he didn't meant that the Manchester United scoring lists were missing his name for the first time since 1989/90.

As the appointment of Louis van Gaal as Manager was announced, the news came out that Ryan Giggs had retired as a player, to take up duties as the new Assistant Manager.

37. Darren Ferguson

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 2-1 defeat vs Sheffield United (as sub), February 26th 1991
League Record: 20 games (+7 as sub)
Sold to: Wolverhampton Wanderers (£250,000) January 1994

He’s the son of Fergie, and he’s never going to get away from that. With that out of the way, we can say as a footballer he was never anywhere near United standard. Not awful, of course, but not the kind to ever stamp his mark in the top flight. His best tool was a good left foot, though he never managed to use it to get the ball in the back of the net.

That all being said, he still managed to win a Premiership medal in 1992/93 after playing plenty of games early in the season due to injuries: his best moment was taking the free kick that led to us getting our first win that season (in the fourth game) down at Southampton. When Lee Sharpe returned from injury, however, it was back to the stiffs for young Darren and when Brian McClair moved back to midfield later in the season, he rarely troubled the first XI again.

I doubt anyone was particularly bothered when he dropped down a division to sign for Wolves. Later, he dropped further down the leagues with Wrexham, where he seemed to discover his best form, finally adding a decent scoring return to this game.

He’ll play a part in the stories of players much further down this line as a manager of teams they went out on loan to. This had led to predictable (though not necessarily untrue) comments that Fergie Snr was again helping his son’s football career. Currently in a second spell in the managerial chair at Peterborough, after a less successful time at Preston saw him get the old tin tack.

36. Gary Walsh

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 3-3 draw vs Aston Villa, December 13th 1986
League Record: 49 games (+1 as sub)
Sold to: Middlesbrough (£600,000), summer of 1995

From Wigan, Gary Walsh was a promising Rubgy League player who fell into football almost by chance: when another player dropped out of a game, he took the place. A United scout was watching and he was soon signed up, playing in the same youth team as Lee Martin and Tony Gill.

A few weeks after Fergie took charge, he got his chance aged only 18. At this point, Gary Bailey  - another blonde goalie who’d graduated to the senior team while only a teenager - was on the verge of retiring from injury (he’d play his five final games in the Spring of 1987) and Walsh was thrown in. Ferguson clearly rated him, as he played plenty of games throughout the rest of 86/87 and started the following season as first choice ahead of the more experienced Chris Turner, who had been signed by Ron Atkinson from Sunderland in the summer of 1985, ostensibly as back-up to Bailey, who at that point was fully fit and firmly established as our #1 and third choice England ‘keeper.

Like Bailey again, injury would ruin Gary Walsh’s United career. The most serious was after being kicked in the head during a mid-season tour in Bermuda, from which it was feared he wouldn’t play again.

As suggested by his lateness in entering this blog, Walsh was out of first team contention for three years – his only first team action coming during a loan spell up at Aidrie – with Jim Leighton then Les Sealey holding onto the goalie’s shirt. He made his comeback in February 1991 and appeared in a few more games that season after Mad Les’ bad injury in the ’91 League Cup final, and even won a Cup Winners’ Cup medal as an unused sub.

Of course, any hopes he had of establishing a first team place when Sealey was let go faded to nothing when we went out and snapped the world’s best in as a new #1. I barely remember him getting a game until the end of 1993/94, when he came on as sub at Ipswich and stayed in the team for the last two games of the season: against Southampton he was particularly impressive and a FA Cup winners medal for sitting on the bench was some small reward.

He may have had more the next season, when he finally got a half-decent run in the team and played ten games, which would have been enough for a Championship medal, if we’d won it that season. Sadly for Gary, we finished second due to last day heroics of West Ham keeper Ludek Miklosko denying us the win needed for the title.

That summer, Bryan Robson took him up to Middlesbrough where he was first choice keeper for a while, followed by a spell at Bradford City where he made over 100 league appearances before ending his playing career as back-up at Wigan. Last heard working as a goalkeeping coach at Hull City.

35. Dennis Irwin

Signed from: Oldham Athletic (£625,000), June 1990
Debut: 2-0 win vs Coventry City, August 25th 1990
League Record: 356 games (+12 as sub), 22 goals
Sold to: Wolverhampton Wanderers (free transfer), summer of 2002

Talk to any time-served United fan about Dennis Irwin and chances are you'll eventually hear the words "reliable" or "consistent". However, that doesn't tell the full story of a man who can count himself as one of Sir Alex Ferguson's best bits of business.

Irwin began his pro career over the Pennines with Leeds United. Helped by the management of Eddie Gray, always well-regarded for his ability developing young players, he was soon in the first team and throughout 1984/85 season was a regular starter. However, that summer Billy Bremner became the new boss and didn't rate the young Irishman, letting him leave on a free. This may help explain why Bremner was sacked a couple of years later.

Snapped by a more sympathetic manager in Oldham Athletic's Joe Royle, Dennis was soon back on track and became a key part of a developing team. By 1990, alongside ex-Red Andy Richie, he was part of a very good team that reached the League Cup final and gave United all manner of problems in the FA Cup.

I actually got a decent look at him around this time, as I won two tickets to the 1990 League Cup final in which Oldham lost 1-0 to Nottingham Forest. Irwin must have made a good impression, as I can clearly remember being happy with the news he'd be wearing a red shirt.

In his first season, he was mainly seen at right-back. On his début, he helped set up both our goals and his crossing and dead-ball abilities would become a big part of our player over the next decade. Eventually, he settled in at left-back, a position in which he can claim to be our best ever, certainly from those I've seen. Though not the quickest player, he had the intelligence to always position himself correctly and was as good at crossing the ball as most wingers. Never shy going forward, it was one of his runs that brought about the penalty that opened the scoring in the 1994 FA Cup final. The run to that final also saw him on the end of a great team move against Wimbledon, which he finished by scuffing the ball into the corner.

He was also a dead-shot at set-pieces, being our penalty taker for a spell in the late 1990s, a job at which he was typically reliable. I remember him missing one late on in the 1999 Treble season but didn't shirk when the next spot-kick came up, at Liverpool - which he put away.

By 2002, he was well into his 30s and we had Mikael Silvestre playing in the left back position and he was allowed to sign for Wolves. In his first season, alongside Paul Ince, they were promoted to the Premiership. Though they were relegated back down after one season, Dennis didn't disgrace himself in his final year before retirement - indeed, when he came back to Old Trafford, I remember a young Portuguese number seven was kept well in his place by the veteran.

34. Mark Bosnich

Signed from: Non-contract player (June 1989)
Debut: 0-0 draw vs Wimbledon, April 30th 1990
League Record: 3 games
Sold to: Left due to work permit problems (June 1991)

You wait ages for another goalie, then two come along at once… I’m not sure if Leighton had fitness problems leading up to the 1990 FA Cup final, whether he was just being rested or whether Fergie was finally having doubts that would become justified in the first game against Crystal Palace.

Like Les Sealey, Mark Bosnich had two spells with the club. He is, however, the first player who’ll appear more than once as I’ve decided to have different entries for both his spells at the club to avoid talking too much here about events ten years down the line.

There’s not too much to say about his initial period with us. He was a young student from Australia at the time, and I’m not aware of the circumstances that saw him get a small handful of games over 1990/91. It seems he did a decent enough job (two draws and a win) and we may have been keen on signing him to a contract – he was essentially playing as an amateur, I believe. But problems obtaining a work permit got in the way and he went back home. He’d return soon after by marrying a girl from Manchester, which enabled him to sign for Aston Villa and begin a career that’ll bring him back around come entry #88.

(Also, I can't find a picture of him from around the time of his first spell at the club and the fact Garth Dykes' The United Alphabet book uses one of him in a Villa kit for the entry would perhaps suggest there aren't any.)

33. Les Sealey

Signed from: Luton Town (free transfer) first time, Aston Villa (free transfer) the second.
Debut: 2-1 win vs Queen’s Park Rangers, April 14th 1990
League Record: 33 games
Sold to: Aston Villa (free transfer) the first time, Blackpool (free transfer) the second.

Our second goalkeeper, at last! Jim Leighton made nearly two entire seasons without missing a single game in league or cup - you can't imagine that happening in these days of squad rotation.

Les Sealey is a classic case of how you can become a huge fan favourite and even enjoy a little iconic status without necessarily being a top-quality footballer. What was perhaps most important was that he “got” what it meant to play for us and revelled in every second he got in the shirt.

When he arrived at United, Les must have thought his best days were well behind him. 33-years-old, he’s had lengthy spells at Coventy City and Luton Town and was now second choice at the latter. Never a likely contender for a move to a big club or international recognition, he’d not had much luck on the trophy front either: when Luton Town had the biggest day of their history in beating Arsenal 3-2 at the 1988 League Cup final, he was out with injury. When they made the final again the next year, he was back in the team but had to make do with a runners-up medal as they lost 3-1 to Nottingham Forest. He hadn't had the best game in that, hence Andy Dibble earning the #1 shirt soon after.

By the Spring of 1990, he was second choice at Luton and it seemed his career was winding down. The typical route from here would have been to sign for someone like Northampton Town and have a few years kicking round the lower divisions. Instead, he wound up on loan at Manchester United and a month later, winning a FA Cup winner’s medal. Ferguson noted that his choice to play him ahead of Leighton in the replay came down to that while Sealey may not have been a technically better keeper, he thought he was. Confidence in a goalie is crucial, and Les had that in spades.

The next season, he started as first choice, barking away at the back four and becoming a firm crowd favourite. His most memorable moment came in the 1991 League Cup final, when he was seriously hurt in a clash with a Sheffield Wednesday player. Our physio, Jim McGregor, wanted to bring him off, such was the worry about the severity of the wound. But these were the days before substitute goalkeepers and Les knew he needed to stay on, looking like he was willing to beat the crap out of Jim and anybody else who insisted differently.

After defeat and on the bus back to the airport, Les passed out. It later transpired that if he’d got on the plane to Manchester, the change in air pressure may have caused very serious damage to his leg.

All was made better when he came back to play in the Cup Winners Cup Final. His joyous celebrations as seen in the pic above made the cover of the legendary (for a certain generation) video game Manchester United Europe.

In the summer, Ferguson correctly noted that to challenge for the top prize, you need a world class keeper (exception to the rule: John Lukic), and the big Dane he signed was as good as they got. Not ready to play second fiddle again, Les was allowed to join Aston Villa on a free. He started out there first choice, but Nigel Spink won his place back and our man was allowed to go out on loan to local rivals Coventry and Birmingham. In the middle of 92/93, we needed some back-up and brought him back: he remained a popular figure and would get a song during the warm-up.

When the aforementioned world class keeper got sent-off against Charlton in a FA Cup quarter final in 1994, Les stepped into the breach, and it was great to see him on the pitch again. He even got to play in the League Cup final a few weeks later due to the Dane’s suspension. We lost 3-1 in a game I watched for the main part in a Motorway service station near Stoke on the way to Milton Keynes. That summer, having become third choice - entry #36 got the nod as sub keeper for the FA Cup final - he went off to Blackpool, later returning to his native London with West Ham. He got a game for them at Old Trafford in the last game of the 1996/97 season and, again, got a warm reception.

Sadly, Les suffered a fatal heart attack in August 2001, making him I hope the only entry who is no longer with us. At our next game after his death, up at Blackburn, reds in the stands went into a loud rendition of "There's only one Les Sealey" in tribute. Top man, sadly missed.

32. Danny Wallace

Signed from: Southampton (£1,300,000), September 1989
Debut: 3-2 win vs Portsmouth (League Cup tie, scored once), September 20th 1989
League Record: 36 games (+11 as sub), 6 goals
Sold to: Birmingham City (£400,000), October 1993

As a child in the 1980s, Danny Wallace always seemed a really exciting player and thus I was pleased when we signed him. Good enough to make his Southampton début aged only 16, the departure of star players like Kevin Keegan, Alan Ball and Mick Channon ensured that he was one of their main men by the time they had their best-ever league season, finishing second in 1984.

Blessed with rapid pace and an ability to score spectacular goals (his superb overhead effort against Liverpool in 1984 was one of the picks of the decade), he made his England debut against Egypt in 1986, scored and was then strangely never got picked again. A couple of years later, he played a game alongside his younger twin brothers, Rod and Ray, a rare occasion of three brothers playing alongside each other in the same team.

It never really worked out for him at United, sadly. There were moments in his first season where he showed us what he could do - vital goals in cup games against Newcastle and Oldham spring to mind – and he was in the team that won the cup at the end of his first season. Often it seemed he struggled with being restricted to being on the left - Wallace was never really a winger in the traditional sense.

But then the real problems started after that summer, when Lee Sharpe returned to full fitness won the left-wing position. Despite that, his best moment came in the autumn of 1990 in the 6-2 smackdown of Arsenal. Playing the kind of free role he was used to at Southampton, Danny run riot, playing a big part in most of the goals and scoring the sixth himself. There haven't been too many better individual performances in a United shirt that I can remember.

It was a false dawn, though. Niggling injuries kept him out of the team and though he managed to earn a Cup Winners Cup medal as an unused sub, he barely featured at all from 1991 to his departure in 1993. His last contribution was scoring a superb long-range goal down at Brighton in a League Cup tie in the Autumn of 1992. A move to Birmingham saw a debut goal followed by familiar fitness problems and he retired after playing a single game for Wycombe, aged only 31.

Unfortunately for Danny, the reason for his recurring injury woes soon became clear when he diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis.  Since then, he’s faced the condition bravely and took part in fund-raising efforts: several ex-United players took part in a benefit game down at Southampton a few years back, and the man himself did a sponsored walk of the London Marathon course.

31. Paul Ince

Signed from: West Ham United (£2,400,000), September 1989
Debut: 5-1 win vs Millwall, September 16th 1989
League Record: 203 games (+3 as sub), 25 goals
Sold to: Inter Milan (£7,500,000), summer of 1995

Paul Ince was one of numerous products of West Ham United’s famed youth system and the ambition that would cause many a United fan to later label him many rude names was evident when the Hammers were relegated from the First Division in 1989.

He wanted out, and got wind United were interested. With West Ham not too keen on letting him go, a picture appeared in the papers of him wearing a United shirt. Sure enough, Hammers fan were enraged and his swiftly left the club - Ince stated the picture wasn't supposed to have been released until after the transfer was completed, but it didn't sit well with anyone. Not ones to drop a grudge, our match at Upton Park in 1994 saw him subject to vile abuse from his former supporters, which he answered in the best fashion by scoring a late equaliser.

When he did arrive, he failed a medical and thus the fee was paid with a million up front and the rest per game he played. At first, he didn’t seem all that special, being very raw and as yet unable to really take control of a game - and if not for injuries to Robson and Webb, I doubt he would have got as many games as he did in his first year. Indeed, for spells of that season, he instead played at right-back in place of the injured Viv Anderson, including the cup final.

All the same, there were hints of something special: I especially remember him smashing a long range shot against the bar against Oldham that signalled there was something worth developing.

Over the next couple of years, he matured as a midfield player, doubtless helped by playing and training alongside Bryan Robson and by the time we began the first Premiership campaign, he was a crucial part of the team. In no small part this was down to finally adding goals to his game, knocking in seven that season when playing as a ball-winning midfielder was no small beer. He also made a habit of making driving runs from midfield that often led to goals - the third in our crucial win at Norwich in the Spring of 1993 being a very good example.

Around this time, he established himself in the national team and made history when he became the first black England captain. Despite that, his career at international level never really seemed to hit the heights of his club form, strong performances at Euro ’96 aside.

Playing alongside a man from Cork the next season, he got even better as we snapped up the league and FA Cup double. However, there were problems under the surface. Ince seemed to have begun believing his own hype, revelling in his self-appointed status as “the Guv’nor” – a nickname never likely to impress Alex Ferguson. After the disastrous 4-0 spanking at the hands of Barcelona in 1994, Fergie slammed Ince as a “big time Charlie” and in hindsight, it was no surprise we let him head off to Inter that summer, especially given he had ambitions of trying his luck in Italy. It turned out to be the best move for us too, his departure allowing other players the chance to stamp their mark on the team.

At Inter, he seemed to be a success: his second season saw him score six goals in 24 games, a superb return in the hyper-defensive Serie A. They also made the UEFA Cup final, though were beaten on penalties by Schalke.

After two years on the continent, he reappeared here playing for, of all teams, Liverpool – much to the chagrin of numerous Reds. In Ince’s defence, we hadn’t taken up the option to resign him and the scousers were doubtless the biggest club to make an offer. What was more hard to take was when he scored an equaliser in a crucial league game at the end of the 1999 season and celebrated like he’d won the World Cup. Perhaps he believed he’d got one over Fergie, but history records who had the last laugh there.

After failing to add to his medals in a team that flattered to deceive, he went on to spells at Middlesbrough and Wolves before moving into management. In that role, he appears to not possess the skills that he seems to think he has, though at least his son Tom looks like being a promising winger over at Blackpool.

Despite his apparent bitterness in the late 90s towards us, I've managed to maintain a respect for him as a player. He stepped up when Bryan Robson was too old to run the midfield and we wouldn't have won the 1993 and 1994 championships without him. That said, a future entry took many of Ince's qualities and added much more...

30. Gary Pallister

Signed from: Middlesbrough (£2,300,000) August 1989
Debut: 0-2 defeat vs Norwich City, August 30th 1989 
League Record: 314 games (+3 as sub), 12 goals
Sold to: Middlesbrough (£2,500,000) July 1998

Talk about a bad start: signed as the most expensive player in the country, on his debut – broadcast live on TV - Gary managed to give away a penalty and look like a complete lummox. A few weeks later, we got run all over the pitch in a 5-1 defeat to Man City and it was looking like a transfer mess-up in the Garry Birtles mold was in the offing. Instead, he ended up as one of the top centre halves in the country and a mainstay of one of the best defensive line-ups in the club’s history. 

Starting out at Middlesbrough in the mid 80s, he played his part in bringing them back from bankruptcy in the old Third Division all the way to the top flight. Though they were relegated in 1989, young Gary had earned England caps and wanted to stay in the top flight to help his chances of further honours. With Paul McGrath sold, we were in the market for a replacement and Fergie had to go through protracted negotiations before getting his man.

After his rocky start, not helped by playing in a team struggling for form, he finally settled in alongside Steve Bruce, a centre back partnership that would form a crucial part of the success to come. The two would eventually be labelled "Dolly and Daisy" and complemented each other superbly: Pallister was surprisingly pacey (I seem to recall he was one of our top sprinters over 100 meters for many years) and also a lot taller than Bruce. Pally was also confident with the ball at his feet and, somewhat amusingly, also looked knackered out after a few minutes on the pitch. 

Somewhat infamously, he was regarded as a terrible trainer to the degree the other players coined the phrase "having a Pally" for someone who'd not done too well that day. 

Through the early 1990s, he improved vastly along with the rest of the team - his own development being recognised by fellow pros who voted him PFA Player of the Year in 1992. The next year, he didn't miss a game as we won the first Premiership title. A classic United moment came in the last home game of that season, against Blackburn. With the title already won, we were 2-1 up in the last minute when we won a free kick on the edge of their area. To everyone's surprise (especially Bryan Robson, who can be seen on camera looking to the bench with a look of bafflement), Pally stepped up to take it. To complete a legendary season, he then smashed the ball home to score his first of the season.  

(As a sidenote, if you ever watch the behind-the-scenes video Captain's Log, there's a scene before the game where Pally laments him not scoring that season and asks to take any free kicks near goal if we were winning. Obviously the boss was in a generous mood!)

Despite his consistent form in a successful side, he never got the recognition at international level. 22 caps is no small amount, but he surely deserved more. Instead, successive coaches preferred the likes of Tony Adams, Mark Wright and Gareth Southgate. He got the respect he deserved from United fans, though - we knew he was a crucial part of a winning team. 

Perhaps his greatest moment in the shirt came close to the end of his time with us, at Anfield in the Spring of 1997. Chasing the title, points were essentially and Pally stepped up to nod in from two corners at the Kop end in a brilliant 3-1 victory, giving the team a big boost on the road to another title.

Eventually, age and injuries took their toll and he was sold back to Boro. He only managed a couple more seasons before decided to pack it in, and he’s been seen a few times on MUTV, including one memorable occasion where a caller on a phone-in stating his admiration for Gary’s 'bulge' in the trouser area. Another amusing anecdote was told to Andy Mitten by a teammate who said that when Pally had his kitchen renovated, he had the fridge moved a foot closer to the door to living room so he didn’t have to walk so far for a beer. 

29. Neil Webb

Signed from: Nottingham Forest (£1,500,000), July 1989
Debut: 4-1 win vs Arsenal (scored once), August 19th 1989
League Record: 70 games (+5 as sub), 8 goals
Sold to: Nottingham Forest (£800,000), November 1992

There’s a firm memory in my head of the morning after the opening day of the 1989/90 season. United had just smashed the previous season’s champions Arsenal 4-1 and, reading the match report in the Sunday paper at my granddad’s house, I marvelled at what seemed a new dawn with our all-star midfield duo of Webb and Robson.

Ah, youthful naivety. Webb would become one of the most reviled United players of his time but it’s worth remembering just how good he was: he was a top player at Forest and the fee we paid didn’t seem that much given the quality he was know to have. After serving time at both Reading and Portsmouth, it was Clough who took him to the top level and it wasn’t long before he became the 1000th player to be capped for England.

By the summer of 1989, he was on the verge of being fully established alongside Robbo for England where he was expected to star in the following year’s World Cup. We stumped up the cash, and on his debut he smashed in a brilliant goal. As debuts go, it didn’t get much better and the crowd must have been buzzing.

Only a matter of weeks later, a tackle caused serious damage to his cruciate ligament. He was out of action for most of the season and though he was back for the FA Cup final and set up the winning goal, he was never the same player again. Always a tad chunky, the injury robbed him of the speed to compensate. Though he still somehow made the World Cup squad, he only got match time in the very sedate third/fourth place play-off game.

In 1990/91, he played plenty of games but the performances weren’t up to his previous standards and there was also plenty of competition for places - his lack of form might be reflected in his scoring record seen above, compared to 47 goals in 146 games for Forest. Though he played in our unsuccessful League Cup final team, he was left out for the Cup Winners Cup final months later. Matters reached a nadir a year later in a game against his old team: with United losing and needing a win to try to get a league challenge back on track, he was subbed. Rather than race off to get the fresh legs on the pitch, he trudged off at a pace that suggested he didn’t give a toss. He wouldn’t be forgiven, and though he somehow made it to the European Championship fiasco in Sweden that  summer, his United career was essentially finished.

Somehow, we managed to flog him off back to Forest for a decent fee, perhaps one of the many signs Brian Clough was seriously beginning to lose it. He was perhaps at his level helping Forest gain promotion back to the top flight in 1993/94, and subsequently saw out his playing days with Grimsby Town and Aldershot. (In)Famously, he later worked as a postman, for which he was the target of an unfair amount of ridicule but has since found employment as a pundit and coach.

28. Mike Phelan

Signed from: Norwich City (£750,000), July 1989
Debut: 4-1 win vs Arsenal, August 19th 1989
League Record: 88 games (+14 as sub), 2 goals
Sold to: West Bromwich Albion (free transfer) May 1994

Into a new season, then. Following a 1988/89 season that defined "mediocre", Fergie brought out the chequebook to bring five new names to the club. Of which the first one we'll come across is Mike Phelan. He was an odd signing on some levels, paying a fair sum of money for a player who was hardly dynamic even in his best years at Norwich. Essentially, I think we were buying a younger version of Mike Duxbury. 

For his first two seasons, Phelan mainly played in a midfield that was often lop-sided due to our lack of a right winger, a job which would sometimes fall to Mike, which seems laughable in hindsight, given he had a chronic lack of pace. I can only assume there was nobody else to do the job after we’d flogged Gordon Strachan and Fergie lost faith with Russell Beardsmore. Mercifully, the emergence of Lee Sharpe meant most of the play went down the other flank. That said, it was our man here who set up Mark Robins to score the memorable winner in the 1990 FA Cup semi-final. Phelan wasn’t a terrible player, and often did his job competently enough, but the feeling was that he wasn’t going to play a big part in winning the big prizes. 

With subsequent signings of other players and the appearance of some kid from Salford, he ended up spending the next two seasons as a classic utility player, often filling in at right back. In our first Premiership winning campaign, he just played enough games for a medal, and even scored his first ever goal at OT during a FA cup game vs Bury, but barely featured the next season and was binned off to WBA on a free. 

As a player, he was solid enough but never the kind of quality that wins leagues – for one thing, he never scored anywhere near enough. He also had a moustache, and I have a problem taking footballers with muzzies seriously. On the plus side, he had an ace chant to the tune of the Righteous Brothers’ classic: “You’ve lost your hairline, Phelan...” 

For several years, he worked back at United as an assistant manager and the target of no shortage of ire from some sections of the support, as well as being the source of much amusement for his taste in training shorts. 

27. Derek Brazil

Signed from: Rivermount Boys' Club of Dublin, March 1986
Debut: 1-2 loss vs Everton (as sub), May 10th 1989
League Record: 2 games, both as sub
Sold to: Cardiff City (£85,000), August 1992

Someone I have absolutely no recall of, which isn't too surprising given the brevity of his time on the pitch. What is surprising is how long he spent at the club - six years - despite an almost complete lack of first team action.

Which isn't much of a surprise - he always had the likes of Kevin Moran (initially), Paul McGrath and Steve Bruce ahead of him, while Mike Duxbury, Clayton Blackmore and Billy Garton were capable of filling in when needed. Poor Derek never had much of a chance, outside of an outbreak of the Ebola Virus at the club. Given he had trials with West Ham, City, Spurs and Chelsea, I wonder if he felt he made the right decision in joining us?

Not much more I can say - Cardiff City fans may have more of an insight given he played over 100 league games for them. Wiki sez he's still living in the area (managing some local teams, in which capacity I've nicked the picture) and also that he played as part of a United team in a "Legends" tournament - paying spectators may have had a case under the Trade Descriptions Act, though I'm sure he was much preferable to Alan Brazil.

26. Norman Whiteside

Signed from: Youth team
Debut: 1-0 win vs Brighton (as sub), April 24th 1982
League Record: 193 games (+13 as sub), 47 goals
Sold to: Everton (£600,000), July 1989

Like Paul McGrath, there’s no doubting Norman Whiteside was a hero in a red shirt but he’s also one I’ve very few clear recollections of. It’s perhaps worth noting that Big Norm is the last player we’ll come across who played under Ron Atkinson.

Hailing from an area of Northern Ireland where he would see people get drills through their kneecaps, the “Shankill Skinhead” followed the paths of George Best and Sammy McIlory in joining the youth ranks at Old Trafford. Physically mature way beyond his years, he came off the bench for his debut a few weeks before his 17th birthday and on his full debut against Stoke a month later, scored his first goal.

Famously, he went to that summer’s World Cup in Spain with Northern Ireland, breaking Pele’s record to become the youngest player to ever play in the finals and taking part in their surprise 1-0 victory over the host nation. He would also be in his country’s squad for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.

Another record was broken in a remarkable first full season (82/83), when he became the youngest player to score in a Wembley cup final, opening the scoring in the League Cup final against Liverpool. Sadly, the scouse won 2-1. Compensation came with winning the FA Cup weeks later. Big Norm had seen us make the final by scoring a brilliant volley to see off Arsenal in the semi-final and he scored in the replay of the final too, the second in the 4-0 drubbing of Brighton.

Despite only being 18, there was attention coming his way from the biggest names in Europe. Whiteside considered himself, perhaps rightly, too young to be moving away and committed himself to United, luckily for us. By the time of the 1985 FA Cup final, he'd been moved back into midfield due to the emergence of Mark Hughes. This was the game that would see his most sublime moment: deep into extra time, with United down to ten men against an Everton team that were recently crowned champions, Hughes put a ball out wide to Norman, who was knackered out, but still managed to use one of their defenders as a shield to curl a shot into the net.

It was a sublime finish, that sadly proved to be a peak in Whiteside's career. Over the next few years, injuries would begin to take their toll. He didn't help himself by enjoying a few too many drinks in those periods out of action and when Ferguson took over, he was determined to rid the club of what he saw as a dangerous drink culture.

His last truly great moment in a United shirt came at Anfield in the Spring of 1988. Liverpool were miles ahead in the league and, after a Bryan Robson opener, had gone 3-1 up. To make matters worse, Colin Gibson had managed to get himself sent off. Fergie knew what was needed and sent Stormin’ Norman on for one last bit of Scousebusting.

Within minutes, in a real "you won’t see that anymore" series of actions, he had "sorted" Steve McMahon with a tackle verging on GBH and “accidentally” elbowed John Barnes in the windpipe, essentially putting the two players causing us the most trouble out of the game. Robbo and Gordon Strachan scored to offer some great memories in consolation to only finishing second in the league.

Soon after, frustrated by lack of first team action, he put in a transfer request that was accepted, only for injury troubles to put off any would-be suitors. His last season (1988/89) saw him only make six appearances but Fergie somehow wangled a decent fee out of Everton, who got a year’s service out of him before he had to retire through injury. Putting his negative experiences to good use, he went back to school and, to his credit, qualified as a Podiatrist, in which capacity he presently works for several football clubs.

What makes his early retirement from the game sadder is that when we won the league and cup double in 1994, four years after his retirement, he was still younger than a fair few of our team!