Sir Alex Ferguson Reveals Only One Player Would 'Guarantee Place In Man United All-Time XI'

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that Denis Irwin would be the only player that would unquestionably make his Manchester United all-time XI.

The 54-year-old United legend enjoyed a 12-year career at Old Trafford and is widely regarded as one of the best left-backs in Premier League history.

And Ferguson, 78, has admitted that it would be difficult to pick his best Man United XI with the plethora of world-class talent he worked with.

However, the former legendary United boss believes Irwin would be the only player to 'most certainly' feature in his all-time XI ahead of any player he managed.

Ferguson explained during a Q&A session in 2013: "People ask you who is your best Man United team. It is absolutely impossible.

"You look at the strikers I had, going back to [Brian] McClair, [Mark] Hughes, [Andy] Cole, [Eric] Cantona, [Ruud] van Nistelrooy, [Louis] Saha, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, [Dwight] Yorke, Teddy Sheringham.

"Then to the present players, Wayne Rooney, [Robin] van Persie, Chicharito [Javier Hernandez]. How do you pick out of that? Cantona and somebody else?

"The midfield was probably a bit easier because you have [Roy] Keane, [Bryan] Robson and [Paul] Scholes, they were fantastic players and [David] Beckham, [Cristiano] Ronaldo and [Ryan] Giggs.

"But honestly, I would say Denis Irwin would be the one certainty to get in the team. I called him an eight out of ten."

Ferguson praised Irwin in his 2013 biography for being "quick and nimble" and admitted that he was the type of player that would never "let you down."

The Scotsman wrote in Alex Ferguson: My Autobiography: "Now there was a player, Denis Irwin.

"We always called him eight out of ten Denis. So quick and nimble: quick-brained. Never let you down. There was never any bad publicity with him."

Irwin left Old Trafford in 2002 and spent two seasons at Wolves before retiring from football in 2004.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Football News, Football, Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson, red devils, Premier League, Old Trafford

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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