A midfield is always known as the backbone of a team and a great team always has a solid midfield. Manchester United have, for most of their history, played a two-man central midfield, and the club has surely done very well. The Red Devils have had some great central midfielders down the years, who have served the club well and have gone down in the history books.
Let us now have a look at the greatest central midfielders to have played for the Red Devils.
#3 BRYAN ROBSON –
Arguably the greatest player to have captained the Manchester United side, Bryan Robson was a great servant to the club. Robson signed for United in 1981 and slotted straight into the Red Devils midfield because of his energy and reading of the game. Robson was a tenacious midfielder who played a box-to-box for most of his United career that spanned for 13 years.
In his time at Old Trafford, Robson played a total of 461 games in which he scored 99 goals. Robson is Manchester United’s longest-serving captain and he finished his career winning almost everything with the Red Devils. The midfielder won a couple of Premier League titles, three FA Cups, two FA Charity Shields and the European Cup Winners’ Cup.
Robson was nicknamed as “Captain Marvel” at United and was appointed United’s Global Ambassador in 2011.
#2 ROY KEANE –
From one great captain to another, Roy Keane was another successful United captain and was one of the best midfielders in Premier League history. Roy Keane signed for the Red Devils in 1993 from a relegated Nottingham Forest side for a British transfer record fee of £3.75m. Keane was Robson’s replacement at United and slowly slotted into the midfield to make the box-to-box role his own.
Keane is still famous for his aggressiveness on and off the pitch, which was always a problem his opposition had to face. The Irishman played 13 seasons at United in which he played 480 games and scored 51 goals. In his time at Old Trafford, Keane won seven Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the famous 1998/98 Champions League title.
The aggressive midfielder captained the United side to their famous treble in 1998/99 season. Keane was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2004 before hanging up his boots at United in 2005.
#1 PAUL SCHOLES –
Regarded by some as the greatest midfielder of his generation, Paul Scholes was one of a kind at Manchester United. Scholes was a one-club man who played for United throughout his footballing career, which started from 1993 when he was picked from the academy to the first-team squad. Scholes remained at Old Trafford for 19 seasons becoming the third-highest appearance maker for the Manchester club.
The Englishman started his career as a central attacking midfielder but soon changed to a central midfielder, playing in a midfield-two with Keane. His long-range of passing made him one of the best passers in modern football history and Scholes also had a great shot in him. He is one of the most decorated footballers in Premier League history.
In his United days, Scholes played a total of 718 games in which he also scored 155 goals making him one of the highest-scoring midfielders. Scholes won 11 Premier League titles, three FA Cups, two Champions Leagues and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2008.
Also Read:
- Manchester United’s Players With Highest Appearances [All-Time]
- Manchester United’s all-time highest goalscorers
- Greatest big-money flops at Manchester United
- Manchester United All-Time XI – Best Man United Players Ever
