The votes are in and Manchester United’s best team from the opening 25 years of this century can be revealed.
Over the past month, we have been asking readers on TalkingPoints to vote in a series of polls to help us build the best Manchester United team between 2000-2025.
The results are in, with more than 7,000 votes cast in total. Thank you for your contributions.
Goalkeeper: Edwin van der Sar
The battle to win the number one spot was a two-way fight between two standout goalkeepers, Edwin van der Sar and David de Gea.
Both would have been worthy winners, but it was Edwin van der Sar who triumphed with 72 per cent of the vote.
It’s hard to argue with that. Van der Sar was a legend who saved a penalty to clinch the Champions League, and also set a Premier League record for most minutes without conceding a goal.
Left-back: Patrice Evra
Patrice Evra was voted as Manchester United’s best left-back after a very one-sided vote.
Evra amassed 80 per cent of the vote, with Luke Shaw a very distant second place with just 7 per cent.
Right-back: Gary Neville
While Gary Neville’s best years at Manchester United were split between the 1990s and 2000s, he still came out on top in our voting.
Gary Neville earned 71 per cent of the vote, with Antonio Valencia in second place with 18 per cent. Rafael da Silva had just 3 per cent.
Centre-backs: Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand
There was never really any doubt it would be Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand, the bedrock of Manchester United’s 2008 Champions League winning team.
There have been many centre-backs to play for United over the past 25 years, but none have had the impact Vidic and Ferdinand did, individually or as a pair.
With two places up for grabs, Vidic amassed 43 per cent of the vote, and Ferdinand 32 per cent.
Jaap Stam was third in the voting with 19 per cent. Close, but not quite close enough.
Midfield: Roy Keane, Paul Scholes, Bruno Fernandes
Midfield is where we really mix up the different eras at Manchester United, with Bruno Fernandes gatecrashing the party.
With three midfield places available in our 4-3-3 formation, Paul Scholes came out on top with 40 per cent of the vote.
He was joined by legendary captain Roy Keane, 31 per cent, and current skipper Bruno Fernandes, with 9 per cent of the total vote.
Ryan Giggs just missed out (6 per cent), while Michael Carrick and David Beckham had 3 per cent each. Paul Pogba managed only 0.5 per cent of the vote.
Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Ruud van Nistelrooy
While Manchester United had one of the greatest trios we have ever seen in 2008, Carlos Tevez failed to earn a single vote in our poll.
Record goalscorer Wayne Rooney topped the poll with 40 per cent of the vote, joined by ex-teammate Cristiano Ronaldo with 27 per cent.
Lethal marksman Ruud van Nistelrooy was not far behind, completing the front three with 23 per cent.
Robin van Persie was a distant fourth with just 5 per cent of the vote. He can be one of the super-subs.
This is the BEST combined XI of Manchester United players between 2000 and 2025 🐐
What would this team achieve in the modern game? Would they win it all?
Now help us one more time… vote for the best player between 2000-2025
A big thank you to everybody who voted for helping to select a truly fearsome team, showcasing the very best players we have seen wearing the Manchester United shirt.
Now we are looking to crown Manchester United’s best player between 2000 and 2025, and we are anticipating this could be a close fought battle.
With 11 players to choose from, cast your vote and tell us who is the top player to represent United in the 21st Century so far…
Who is the BEST Manchester United player 2000-2025? Cast your vote 🗳️
Help us crown the Best Man Utd player of the 21st Century 👑
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