The Big Question: De Gea / Stekelenberg / Neuer?

With "the flying Dutchman" Van Der Sar confirming our fears of him quitting football at the end of the season, United seem to have narrowed down to three players, De Gea, Stekelenberg and Neuer. Let's take a lot at all 3:

David De Gea:

Young and promising

A highly rated Spanish goalkeeper who playes for Athletico Madrid. Still just 21 but tipped to take over Casillas for goalkeeping job for Spain, once the Real Madrid goalkeeper retires, even though more experienced Reina, Asenjo and Valdes are in queue too. The reports of United being linked to DeGea first came around March last year, when it was first reported that Athletico Madrid have rejected United's offer.

Pros:

• Just 21, has lot of potential to improve. And at the best club in the world, under the best coaches, his career will take a steep rise.
• Has played at highest level even in such a short career.(including a UEFA Europa Cup victory)

Cons:

• His age might just go against him. Since VDS is set to retire at the end of this season, United want a player who is capable of taking up his job at the biggest club right away. And SAF, who has always gone for experience between the posts might just let DeGea go.
• Price of around 20m for a goalkeeper is too much to ask.

Maarten Stekelenberg:

Already Van Sar's replacement at Netherlands

The Ajax goalkeeper played a crucial role in Netherlands' World Cup campaign where the Oranjes lost out to Spain in the finals. A product of the famous Ajax youth academy, the player gained heap full of experience as an understudy to VDS in his early days.

Pros:

• At 6feet 6inches, he's amongst the tallest goalkeepers.
• The keeper has made it clear that he would not extend his contract that is set to expire in 2013.
• Has been an understudy to VDS and replaced him first at Ajax and then for the National team.
• At 28, he has enough experience for a good goalkeeper.
• Has the backing of Van Der Sar.
• Has my backing too. :P Saw his performance in the 2010 World Cup. He was great. Cool as a cucumber.

Cons:

No such cons. Just that the price might bother United.

Manuel Neuer:

Experienced and in demand

Neuer has been the longest one whose name has been linked with United. The first news of Neuer coming to United came back in around 2009. Neuer, who has been with FC Schalke 04 earlier expressed his desire to play for United.

Pros:

• Has played consistently for Schalke for the past 5 years.
• Was judged the "best goalkeeper" in Bundesliga for 2007.

Cons:

• Had a difficult world cup.
• United could face a bidding war with Bayern Munich.
• German goalkeepers haven't done well overseas.

Let's just salute to the veteran Dutch goalie who has served 5 of his golden years with the best club in the football history - Manchester United who were lucky to witness his best form ever!

Glory Glory Van Der Sar

Long serving Park Ji Sung finally retires from International football

Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-sung has retired from international football, according to South Korea coach Cho Kwang-rae.

The 29-year-old Park won his 100th cap in the Asian Cup semi-final defeat by Japan on Tuesday and has called a media conference in Seoul on Monday.

Park was not included in South Korea's team for the 3-2 win over Uzbekistan in the third-place match in Qatar.

Ex-Spurs defender Lee Young-pyo, 33, has also quit international football.

After the match, Cho said: "Two players of our team Park Ji-sung and Lee Young-pyo are retiring today from international football, they've done a remarkable job for the prosperity of Korean football.

"It would be better if I could retain both of them in the national team, but other players have done an excellent job."

Both Park and Lee were thrown into the air in celebration by their fellow South Korean players, after the third-place finish ensured automatic qualification for the 2015 Asian Cup.

I just try to do my best at our club and to help the team to win everything Park Ji-sung

"They have been really great players for 10 years and I am really proud of them and they showed to the people all over the world that Korean football is getting better," midfielder Ki Sung-yeung commented.

In 2009, Park became the first South Korean to play in a Champions League final when Manchester United lost to Barcelona.

He has also won three Premier League titles and three League Cups with the English club.

His international debut was in 2000 as part of the team which reached the World Cup semi-finals in 2002, the best performance by an Asian team in the competition.

He also played in the 2006 and 2010 tournaments.

Park told reporters who asked him about his future: "I just try to do my best at our club and to help the team to win everything."

Australia will play Japan in the final of the Asian Cup on Saturday.

Wishing Park Ji Sung all the best for his career with Manchester United and hope he can sustain with United for another decade to come. 

Time to see Alex Chamberlain's performance?

Alex Chamberlain will be under scrutiny as United take on Southampton

United face Southampton this weekend in an all important FA Cup tie. But more than that, the boss and his team of coaches would be eager to watch Alex Chamberlain’s performance for the Saints.

The England U-18 star has been a transfer target of many premier league clubs with Arsenal and Manchester United leading the chase. The 17 year old is said to possess express pace along with an eye for scoring goals. According to scout Gordon Watson, Alex possesses more potential than Theo Walcott did at the same age. Walcott, an ex-Saint who left for Arsenal in 2006 was not as good a prospect when he was at St.Mary’s. “He’s got exceptional maturity with the ball. No one wants to put too much pressure on him, but he’s got more potential than Theo, because his delivery is so much better in the final third. He very seldom gives away the ball, and he turns defence into attack so quickly. He is on track to play at the highest level for a top six team."

According to some insiders at Old Trafford, a 10m bid for the player has already been made. “The boss has made his move and now it's down to the lad and his family to decide - but United are a massive club to turn down."

Chamberlain, who joined the Southampton Football Academy at the age of 7 is the club’s second youngest player ever to start a game, behind Theo Walcott. His 6 goals in 24 games for the Saints could be termed impressive and thus the player was called up for England U-18 side for the match against Poland in November. He has been shortlisted for the England U-19 team set to face Germany in February.

Though, United legend Paul Ince believes that the best thing for Alex is to stay with the Saints for another year or two. Or, the next best thing is that a premier league club signs him now and loan him back to Southampton for 6 months. "What’s the point of Chamberlain going to a club like Liverpool or Arsenal? He will just be stuck in the reserves. Yeah, he can get a big contract now with one of the top clubs, but that’s no good for the education of the kid. I can tell the way Chamberlain plays he loves his football and he can score goals."

Hope we don't miss our "VILLA HUNTER"

Federico Macheda was loaned out to Sampdoria to gain experience as you can see above

Manchester United are set to face Aston Villa this Tuesday, after the weekend FA Cup tie against the Saints, and with no Federico Macheda on the team sheet, Houllier’s men will breathe a sigh of relief. Kiko Macheda, who was bought by United from Lazio as a 16 year old has made 16 appearances for United from 2008-11; before returning back to his homeland Italy with the Serie A club Sampdoria on loan. In the 16 games he played, Macheda managed to score 4 times. Let’s rewind a bit and look at why Villa players are afraid of Macheda:

5 April 2009: United vs. Aston Villa

United had to suffer in defense with Rio injured and Vidic suspended. Gary Neville started with O’Shea in the heart of defense. The Villa players made full use of this mismatch and scored twice to take the lead by 58^th minute. United were in all sorts of trouble and ON came Macheda for Nani in the 61^st minute. United leveled the score, courtesy Ronaldo’s goal in the 80^th minute. In the 90^th minute, Macheda got a pass from the Giggs inside the penalty box and beating the defender, he turned a complete 180 degrees before curling the ball past a helpless Friedel. It was a happy moment for the Italian who had scored a hat-trick earlier against Newcastle in a reserve match just last week.

13 November 2010: Aston Villa vs. United

Aston Villa had won just 1 out of last 29 games against United. And this time, it was almost an Aston Villa youth team playing against United, with the likes of Albrighton, Bannan, Warnock etc. An exciting addition was Jonathan Hogg, for whom this was a debut match. After an entertaining first half, where Villa had the upper hand, United showed some signs of a comeback, only to see themselves going 2 goals down by the 75^th minute. ON came Macheda. The Italian took just 6 minutes to hammer a ball past Friedel to score the first goal for United. The rejuvenated team went all attack against Villa for the next few minutes and the result was a goal from Super-Vidic from a header.

Thus, this time around, Villa will be a bit more relaxed though I see Rooney giving them a hard time!!

I go for Rooney to score in this match and an easy United victory..!! 3-1 I'm guessing, c'mon! it's at home!!!

GGMU

Chicharito's gain is Wayne Rooney's loss

Chicharito is already a hero at Manchester United, undermining the likes of Wayne Roooney!

Wayne Rooney has seen the worst times this season. After a miserable World Cup where he was expected to guide his team through, he has not been very good in the Premier League. The England international has scored just three goals this term, with injuries and a distracting contract saga hindering his cause.



Although he has returned to good form lately, he is still not the same Rooney, every rival feared. The last match against Blackpool can be a turning point in his career. He is now in real danger of losing his starting role, with Mexican starlet Javier Hernandez waiting in the wings. The 22-year-old helped to dig United out of a hole at Blackpool on Tuesday, making an immediate impact after replacing Rooney in a dramatic 3-2 win.

Ferguson admits to being impressed with Hernandez's ongoing progress and faces something of a selection poser now that he is outshining Rooney.

Following the midweek encounter at Bloomfield Road, Ferguson said: "We tried to use Wayne as a wide player and although he has played that role well many times, he was just not getting into the game in the first half.

"It was no fault of his. The rhythm of our game wasn't right. We were all over the place.

"We then tried to put him through the middle but, when we were still 2-0 down 20 minutes into the second half, we had to do something and had to gamble.

"Chicharito [Hernandez] was a gamble. But of course immediately he went right through and forced a terrific save from their goalkeeper.

"Then he got the equaliser for us and in fact could have scored four goals. So he made a great impact."

It's no surprise, Chicharito is in Love... With Manchester United!!!

Lets hope this crisis gets over for our favorite striker and simultaneously Manchester United's gameplay is not disturbed.

Evra: "I am the team DJ"

Old Days: Ronaldo and Evra

In a recent interview with United’s sponsor, Nike, the star full back admitted that he is the team’s DJ and that the other players would kill him if he loses his iPod.

Q. How do you spend your free time? Do you sleep, watch DVDs, go out? What’s your daily routine like?

EVRA: First of all, there’s the training, sweating at the training. I try to give my best in the training. Then, I go to the gym. Then I go home, watch a DVD. I never watch TV. My iPod is my life. If I lose it, I could play badly. 


‘Cause the guys would kill me. I am the team’s DJ. I have to find new tunes before every game. I have over 4000 tunes, so I’m OK. I want the team to be happy before the game. If another guy turns on his iPod, they shout at him. They ask me to turn mine on. It makes me happy. I generally play some rock, to give us strength to fight. No love songs, Never!

The Frenchman also shared his first experience in United shirt. “We were playing against a 3^rd division club, and I asked the other players if someone would actually turn up to watch the game in the stadium? When I entered the pitch, I found myself surrounded by 75000 people and I got it. United are a special club, they’ve got a history. When I wear the club jersey, it’s like wearing the past. So you have to sacrifice yourself for the club.”

Answering to the question whether United are still as good as they were with Ronaldo and Tevez, Evra used a diplomatic approach and said, “I’ll be able to answer this at the end of the season. They are two great friends that I really miss. But United is more than just one or two players; it’s a whole team. I see Tevez very often. I often eat at his place. Even if he plays for an enemy team, he’s still my friend. I’d like Tevez to still play for Manchester United.”

Evra - Man United's finest DJ! 

Explaining his relationship with the Boss, Evra said, “He’s all about winning, about the trophies, the respect for club’s past. United is his priority. He protects his players. The way he pushes you game after game, to new limits, there is no time to rest. If you want to rest, go on the bench. 


At United if you play good, you start on the bench; if you play excellent, you start in a game. 25 years at a club, Incredible.”

ManUtd vs Blackpool (in quotes)

Before the match, Sir Alex predicted that the visit to Bloomfield Road is going to be a tricky fixture and that his side would need to work extra hard to continue their unbeaten run. His prediction, like most of them, came true and United had to come back from 2 goals down and a magical performance from the team in last 20 minutes or so saved them from an embarrassing defeat.

Match 23: United still unbeaten, thanks to Berbatov and Chicharito! (VIDEOS)

Super Sub goal: Chicharito scored United's 2nd!

This was undoubtedly, one of the best games of the Barclays Premier League.
Unbeaten United put on a glorious fight in the second half after having a SHAMEFUL 1st half performance.


Manchester United are now 5 points clear and sitting comfortably at the top summit of League Table. 19th Premier League title is now only 15 games away. Also, with this victory United registered 50+ points in 23 they've played so far! This is definitely an unbelievable feat!

How much would you rate Wayne Rooney's performance? [Poll]

GLORY GLORY BERBA-ROO!

Just how good was Wayne ROOney partnered with Dimitar Berbatov the other day? Personally, I would rate him a little above Dimitar just because he was the protoganist in leading United's attack on the poor Birmingham the other day at Old Trafford. It can be safely said that Wayne is back in his threatening form and it's long before he had scored a hat-trick on his own WITHOUT relying on others.


Having said that, how much are you willing to give Rooney based on his performance out of 10?

Full Highlights: Manchester United 5-0 Birmingham City (VIDEO)

By now, I guess you would be aware of the the epic game that took place yesterday at Old Trafford which saw Man United punishing the visitors Birmingham City beyond recognition. We just thought it would be useful for you guys to watch the FULL highlights of the game.

Just so you know, FT score was: Manchester United 5-0 Birmingham City 


Enjoy the highlights below:


And just in case you were looking to read a match review and know what our experts thought of the game, then <CLICK HERE>

And do not forget to click on the LIKE button and share it with your friends and family!



Glory Glory Man United!

Match 22: This is why Berbatov deserves the Golden boot! (Videos)

Ryan Giggs made his presence felt with a cracking goal making it 3-0 before half-time. 

Manchester United 5-0 Birmingham City
Berbatov (2, 31, 53) Giggs (45) Nani (83)

One can safely say, Manchester United stepped on the field with just 1 task up their sleeves: To totally butcher up Birmingham City beyond recognition. And this is precisely what happened as we witnessed Dimitar Berbatov's 3rd hat-trick this season and 8th career-wise. Also some cracking performance from Wayne Rooney, Luis Nani and Giggs who was later subbed with Owen.

FIRST

United lead a formidable attack and after Giggs' substitution, the Red Devils played an Ultra-offenseive formation of 4-3-3 with VDS constantly feeding the Reds with some extra-magnificent long balls.

Despite Berba's third hat-trick of the season, today was just not about Berbatov, it was also about his striking partner: Wayne Rooney who did a brilliant job with constant crosses and assists. Without him, 5 goals on board would have been incredibly tough. So big ups to big lad.

Let me talk you through the game now.

LINE UP: VDS, Evra (Rafael), Vidic, Smalling, O'Shea, Nani, Carrick (Gibson), Anderson, Giggsy (Owen), Berba, Rooney

Bad news for United: Rio Ferdinand injured his groin during training and hence could not play in the game. 

Good news: Antonio Valencia and Owen Hargreaves are making excellent progress towards full fitness. 

MATCH REVIEW: One couldn't have asked for a better start as O'Shea set Berbatov perfectly up for a stunning finish. Then came along some bad news for United as Michael Carrick was injured and had to be replaced by Long-range-shooter Darron Gibson.

[Picture]: Darren Fletcher's twin sons

The Fletcher's!

Yep, the toddlers you see up there happen are Darren Fletcher's twin sons.

We at TheReDevilSpot.com hope the twins turn out to be United players in the future.

That way we would have the Fletcher brothers in the midfield..

Epicness beholds Manchester United! GLORY GLORY!

Manchester United contracts round-up

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Patrice Evra, a £5.5 million transfer from Monaco in January 2006, has yet to discuss a new contract at Manchester United. Evra insisted earlier this month that he would hold his contract talks until the end of the season. This clearly shows his interest to leave United before his contract gets finished in 2012.

Below is a list of all the contracts expiring following year (2011)
Van Der Sar: Declared that this season is his last!
Gary Neville: Too old for modern football
Paul Scholes: Looks fit for another campaign
Ryan Giggs: Is having talks regarding an extension
Owen Hargreaves: Injury plagued, would be out of contract and would have to be left out next year unfortunately!
Michael Owen: Would leave in Summer, 2011 if not January, 2011.. Talks are ongoing with Sunderland who recently lost Darren Bent to Aston Villa. Will Michael Owen fill the loophole at Sunderland?


Who will stay?
Paul Scholes
Ryan Giggs
TRDS expects the old guard to stay another year.


Contracts expiring in 2012
Wes Brown
John O'Shea: Both O'Shea and Brown are losing their worth for United.
Patrice Evra- Off to Real Madrid this summer?
Darron Gibson- Should stay, provided he improves.
Darren Fletcher- United4ever.
Michael Carrick- Doubtful
Ji Sung Park- Arguably the best asian player around, will quit at United.
Tomasz Kuszczak- Doubftul
Dimitar Berbatov- United4ever


Who will stay?
Dimitar Berbatov
Darron Gibson
Darren Fletcher
Ji Sung Park

Hence the following BIG questions arise:

1) Just how long would the FAB three (Giggs, Neville, Scholes) stay?

2) Would Kuszczak be considered as United's future?

3) Will Patrice Evra quit and consider Real Madrid?

Time will answer those questions, for now sing along and sing LOUD: Glory Glory Man United! 

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Ronaldo to Balotelli "Play more and Speak Less"

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Former Manchester United star, Cristiano Ronaldo  has recently spoken in defence of his ex- team mate Wayne Rooney. The now Real Madrid CR7 has warned Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli he should "speak less and play more".


Balotelli who joined Man City from Inter Milan last summer and recently made headlines in the press by declaring Manchester United's Wayne Rooney was not the best striker in the country let alone in Manchester, needs to keep his mouth shut!

Berbatov is aiming for the Golden Boot award; Tevez is in his way

Dimitar Berbatov is keen to secure the Premier League's Golden Boot this season – if only because it will give Manchester United a better chance of reclaiming their title.

Although United have won 11 championships since the Premier League was formed in 1992, only three of their players – Dwight Yorke, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Cristiano Ronaldo – have finished the season as leading goalscorer.

Berbatov currently stands on 14 for the season – the same number as Manchester City's Carlos Tevez – and he admits remaining at the top of the pile is a personal target.

"I hope I can stay on the top until the end of the season," he told MUTV. "Obviously the goals I score help the team to win points, which is the most important thing.

"For now everything is going according to plan but there are other players doing well, and not just Carlos Tevez. It is a good competition but when you are at the top, you always look back to see who is coming behind you."

Berbatov also paid tribute to his Manchester United colleague Javier Hernández, who has scored six league goals this season following his transfer from Guadalajara last summer.

"Every time when he goes onto the pitch, the only thing in Javier's mind is to score goals," Berbatov said. "He is trouble for defenders. Everybody knows he is very quick. If you give him space and time he is very dangerous.

"He has done really well and the future is ahead of him because he is still young. I have seen the way he works in practice and after that in the gym. If he keeps going like that he has a great future."

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United reserves too good for Bury

Manchester United Reserves 8-0 Bury

It can be safely said that United reserves thumpingly buried the "Bury" team to qualify for the next round of the Manchester Senior Cup with this sparkling victory today.


Reserves team to feature today included some high profile names like Paul Scholes who has only just recovered from a groin injury that has kept him at bay for a month and a half. His last game was the victory over Rangers at OT. O'Shea and Wes Brown had a good game too.


Anders Lindegaard, United's latest signing made his debut in today's game and what a way to be introduced to English football! I'm sure he didn't get many shots to stop but surely must have enjoyed the game standing for 90 minutes.


Team: Lindegaard; Gill (R Brown 46), W Brown, Wootton, O’Shea; King (Vermijl 46), Gibson, Scholes (Norwood 60), Fabio; Brady, Obertan. 

Goals: 1-0 – Josh King, 8 minutes
2-0 – Robbie Brady, 15 minutes
3-0 – Josh King, 24 minutes
4-0 – Gabriel Obertan, 29 minutes
5-0 – Fabio, 31 minutes
6-0 – Gabriel Obertan, 33 minutes
7-0 – Gabriel Obertan, 41 minutes
8-0 – Marnick Vermijl, 52 minutes

Video: UNITED RESERVES 8-0 BURY

Obertan scored a well deserved hat-trick and looks set to feature in the Premier League more often. Josh King, the exciting striker, scored completed an excellent brace. Fabio daSilva (Rafael's brother) joined in by tapping an easy goal. 

An interesting observation, all the goals were scored in the first 52 minutes with 7 of them coming in the first half! Paul Scholes was replaced at the 60th minute. God knows what would have happened had Scholes remained. 20-0 perhaps?

Hope you enjoyed the video!

Review 21: This is why WE are the CHAMPIONS!! (Highlights)

Now, I have never done this before, but this time, I would like to start by saying “IN YOUR FACE” to a whole lot of people, including Andy Gray, Paul Parker, the whole team of pundits at ESPN Star Sports and of course to Mike Dean, the referee. Against all odds, United played like a true champion and came out victorious (at least for me). This is called team performance. This is what other teams don’t have. This is why UNITED ARE THE CHAMPIONS.

FT Score: Tottenham Hotspurs 0-0 Manchester United. 

I think today (16/01/2011) can be easily dubbed as the Super Drawday instead of Super Sunday after all the big 4 games ended in draws : Spurs 0-0 United, Sunderland 1-1 Newcastle, B'gham 0-0 Aston Villa, Everton 2-2 Liverpool. 

United got a major boost in the form of the flying Dutchman, Van Der Sar’s return. The 40 year old veteran was kept on the sidelines for three matches by flu. Also, to support him were the set back four of Rafael, Rio, Vidic and Evra. The midfield was held together by Giggs, Fletcher, Carrick and Nani. Rooney and Berbatov played up front. The United lineup included two ex-Spurs players in Carrick and Berbatov and also the Spurs enemy after his bizarre goal, Nani. And the Lane’s faithful did everything to upset their rhythm with constant boos and jeers. As the match progressed, Rafael became their target too.

Full Match Highlights

Giggs' played his 600th Premier League game and became the only United player to achieve this feat.

Preview 21: Spurs host United at home.

Tottenham Hotspurs vs Manchester United

White Hart Lane

Kicks off @ 4.10 PM GMT 

It's Tottenham Hotspurs vs Manchester United in a few hours and it's an epic Sunday when you see other fixtures like Everton vs Liverpool, Aston Villa vs B'gham and Newcastle United vs Sunderland. 


What makes this game an interesting contest is the contrast between United's away form and Spurs's home form. United have only won twice and drawn 7 times away from home which is indeed terrible and on the other hand Spurs have only lost once at home. United need to silent the Yid Army if they want to improve that statistic. If United lose today, Manchester City will remain on top of the premier league table although United has a couple of games in hand after this one. 

A legend that is RYAN GIGGS!!

The match against Tottenham Spuds will mark the legend's 600th appearance for the Reds. A one-club man, Ryan was stolen away by United right under the nose of the noisy neighbors when Sir Alex personally visited his place to make him sign a contract with United after watching him play from his office window.

Since then, the Welsh Wizard has won more honours than any other player in the club's history. He recently overtook Sir Bobby Charlton's record of most appearances in United shirt. His trophy cabinet includes, along with many personal achievements, an unbelievable tally of 11 Premier League titles,4 FA Cups, 2 UEFA Champions League, 1 FIFA Club World Cup, 8 FA Shield and 1 Intercontinental Cup.

Here's the Welsh Wizard in quotes:

By himself:

> "I am still not the oldest!! Edwin is the oldest." (on being dubbed as "old")

>"I am still shouted at by the boss."

>"A lot of people don't know that my father is black. Kids at school used to make fun of it. But football used to be my best friend."

>"I remember running home from my mate's house, turning the corner and seeing that big Mercedes. I'd forgotten he was coming that day. It was the one and only time he's ever let me off with being late.(on the time when Sir Alex visited his place to make him join United)

>"As a footballer, I can't imagine life without the use of my legs.. Sadly, this is exactly what happens to thousands of children every year when they

accidentally step on a land mine." (when he started the UNICEF campaign)

>"Arsenal have never been able to defend a Championship and we hope Chelsea face that sort of problem this year" (start of 2010-11 season)

>"We already earn more than enough money from football and sponsors. My expenditures include just house bills, holidays and school fee." (on having a quiet wedding while Becks and Rooney sold their wedding pics to tabloids)

>"United are a family club. When I was young, Bruce and Robson used to cheer me up while I sulked in the backseat of the bus after a difficult game."

By others:

"Ryan makes you believe there is a football God." - Ron Atkinson

"Eric Cantona is a great player, but he's not Ryan Giggs" - Johann Cruyff

"A young Giggsy was like a Ballet Dancer. I had never seen a young player like that and I had seen the Busby Babes." - Eric Harrison (United youth coach)

"I was almost in tears watching him play" - Alan Smith (Greater Manchester Schools Manager)

"Giggs is truly world class." - Zinedine Zidane

"Beckham and Scholes have shown their talents as goalscorers, but Giggs is the best." - Alessandro Del Piero

"The first time I saw Giggsy, he was playing for Salford Boys against United's apprentices. He was thin and wiry but he just glided past four of our apprentices as if they weren't even there, then he put the ball in the back of the net. I just thought "This kid's an absolute natural" - Bryan Robson

"How I would love to adorn my team sheet with the words 'Sir' Ryan Giggs. He is like a god in the dressing room, yet easily accessible." - Sir Alex