Words by Tio Utomo, Vijhay Vick, Zee Ko, Kritikorn Thanamahamongkhol and James Dampney
Peter Schmeichel
Remember when Gary Neville refused to shake Schmeichel’s hand ahead of a Manchester derby in the 2002-03 season? It was a reminder that for some fans, the ‘Great Dane’ is no longer a legend because he played for the Citizens. But still, it’s impossible to forget what he did for the club.
Most fans would probably identify Eric Cantona as the best transfer manager Sir Alex Ferguson made in the 90's, but the argument can easily be made for Schmeichel.
When Cantona retired, they already had a player who could replace him in Roy Keane. But when United lost Schmeichel in 1999, finding a keeper to fill his considerable void continued right up until Edwin Van Der Sar’s arrival six years later.
Between 1991 and 1999, Schmeichel made 292 appearances for United in all competitions, winning five Premier League titles among a host of trophies.
His final United game must have been mixed with so many emotions – conceding a sixth-minute goal from Bayern Munich’s Mario Basler, watching more German shots hit the woodwork, making some important saves before galloping into the box for the corner that led to Teddy Sheringham’s equaliser.
He retired in April 2003 and has worked on and off as a pundit for the BBC and on Danish television in a variety of roles, including hosting a quiz show. His son Kasper plays in goal for Leicester City. – TO
Read on to see footage of Schmeichel living dangerously and United lifting the Cup
Gary Neville
On February 2, 2011, United secured a 2-1 victory over West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns. That day would also signal Neville’s final match in the Red Devils’ kit. It was a sad day for United fans as few players before or since have represented the club with such passion.
Part of the famous ‘Class of 92’ along with Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and his younger brother Phil, Neville is widely considered United’s best right-back ever.
He combined superbly with Beckham down the right touchline and helped set-up countless goals, finished so regularly during that 1999 season by Andy Cole or Dwight Yorke.
In the Champions League final, Neville had his hands full at different times marking Bayern attacking threats Carsten Janker, Mario Basler and Steffan Effenberg, but of course left on the winning side.
A one-club man, Neville is credited with 20 trophies from his 400 appearances, making him comfortably one of the most successful England players in history.
After retirement, Neville joined Roy Hodgson’s England coaching staff for Euro 2012. Along with his fellow ‘Class of 92’ brethren, he also purchased lower-league club Salford City before selling a 50 per cent stake to Singapore billionaire Peter Lim.
To a new generation of football fans, Neville is now recognised as one of the best pundits on television. – TO
Ronny Johnsen
Having started his career as a striker, Johnsen was converted into a centre-back and will likely be best remembered for his partnership with Jaap Stam.
Manchester United bought him in 1996 for £1.2m (S$2.6m) from Turkish side Besiktas and he spent six years at Old Trafford, finishing with four Premier League titles, one FA Cup and that Champions League crown.
During the 1999 season he produced a pivotal display that helped them into the final, moved into central midfield by Sir Alex Ferguson in the second leg of the semi-final against Juventus.
Having picked up only a 1-1 draw at home in the first leg, Johnsen was influential in United’s 3-2 away triumph on the night.
He most likely could have had a longer career in Manchester, but a chronic knee injury ended his time prematurely and he left on a free transfer for Aston Villa ahead of the 2002-03 campaign.
He also spent time at Newcastle United, where he was beset by fitness concerns, before playing out his career at Norwegian side Valerenga, picking up another league title in 2005.
Retiring in 2008, he continued playing five-a-side football and is now reportedly selling real estate in his native Norway. – TO
Jaap Stam
The former Dutch international quit playing football in October 2007 after his post-United career took him to Lazio, AC Milan and Ajax. A year after that, he returned to Manchester United as a scout based in South America, a post he held until 2011.
Today, he is completing his UEFA coaching badges and recently said he was keen on returning to England as a manager. He has served as an assistant coach at PEC Zwolle and Ajax.
Stam only spent three seasons at Old Trafford but his name is still mentioned every time the topic of greatest defenders ever to play for the Red Devils emerges.
Stam won the English Premier League three times, plus the Champions League, FA Cup and Intercontinental Cup once – all in 1999.
United sold him hastily to Lazio early in the 2001-02 season after Ferguson was reportedly furious with allegations Stam made in his autobiography. Ferguson later admitted it was an error. His departure was felt until Nemanja Vidic signed in January 2006. – VV
Denis Irwin
The left-back made 529 appearances and scored 33 times over 12 memorable years before leaving for Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2002. He returned to the club as an ambassador after retiring and appears as a pundit for MUTV and other football shows.
Irwin may not have been a household name but his contributions to United did not go unnoticed.
Ferguson labelled him as his best pound-for-pound signing and once commented “one mistake in 10 years isn’t bad” when referring to Irwin’s back pass that led to the only goal in a 1-0 defeat at Highbury in 1995.
Irwin was never one to seek attention, but he rather quietly – and consistently – ensured United were always a tough proposition at left-back. He also packed a sweet foot for free-kicks and spot kicks.
Interestingly, Irwin was signed as a right-back but it was later impossible to tell that left wasn’t his natural spot after he had switched flanks.
Irwin won seven English Premier League titles, two FA Cups, a Champions League, a Cup Winners’ Cup and an Intercontinental Cup with United. – VV
Ryan Giggs
The ‘Welsh Wizard’ is another of United’s one-club men and is still there today, swapping his tormenting runs down the flanks for a permanent seat in the dugout as assistant manager in 2014.
Giggs has been tipped by many, including current manager Louis van Gaal, as a potential successor to the Manchester United hot seat in the coming years.
Interestingly, his only stint away from Old Trafford was with arch-rivals Manchester City’s School of Excellence while in his early teens.
Ferguson snapped up him up at 14 and promised professional football within three years. True enough, Giggs signed a professional deal with United on his 17th birthday and the rest was history.
He broke a host of records, both in terms of United and English football, across his 963 appearances for the club.
During that time he scored 168 goals and won an extraordinary 34 trophies to cap an illustrious career.
Among them were 13 league titles, two Champions Leagues, four FA Cups, three League Cups, nine Community Shields and one Club World Cup.
He also has a cabinet full of individual accolades, including scoring in every year of the Premier League until that streak was snapped in his 22nd and final season. – VV
Video: It's not part of the Champions League, but without this famous Giggs goal, there's no treble
David Beckham
A David Beckham poster was an all-too common sight on the bedroom walls of countless boys and girls who grew up in the '90s, tributes to a superstar who in many ways transcended football.
Part of the talented group of Manchester United trainees that came into prominence under Sir Alex Ferguson, Beckham was known as much for his looks and celebrity lifestyle as he was for his crossing ability and swerving free-kicks.
His celebrity went up another notch after he started dating and then married Victoria Adams, a member of the famous all-girl pop group Spice Girls.
Although Sir Alex was famously dismissive of the union, believing that it affected his professionalism, the winger continued performing on the pitch.
With Roy Keane and Paul Scholes both suspended against Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final, Beckham stepped up to play a pivotal role in central midfield.
While Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer are hailed for their late goals, it was Beckham who provided both assists from corner kicks.
These days, Beckham remains as high-profile as ever, combining charity work with a number of lucrative endorsement deals. Ending his playing career in 2013, he now plans to create a Major League Soccer team in Miami. – ZK
Nicky Butt
Another of Fergie’s Fledglings, Nicky Butt was a dependable member of the Red Devils’ set-up in his 12 years at the club. While he was never the flashiest of players, Butt had a knack of scoring crucial goals.
While initially in and out of the first team after making his debut in 1992, he took his chances well deputising for the indomitable Roy Keane and soon became a regular following Paul Ince’s move to Internazionale.
His hard-tackling style of play made him a good fit alongside Keane and he collected many honours during his time at Old Trafford, including a PFA Premier League Team of the Year nod in 1998.
Butt also played a key role in United’s most famous of victories against Bayern Munich, staying on the pitch for the whole game in place of the suspended Keane.
While he moved on to find more regular playing time with Newcastle in 2004, the midfielder would never forget his beginnings at United. He returned in 2012 as a reserve coach, before becoming head of coaching at the Manchester United Youth Academy in 2014. – ZK
Jesper Blomqvist
Swedish winger Jesper Blomqvist first caught Sir Alex Ferguson’s eye while at IFK Goteborg, scoring in a shock 3-1 win against Manchester United in 1994 that knocked the English club out of the Champions League.
An unsuccessful move to AC Milan soon followed, but Blomqvist spurned United’s initial advances and signed for Parma AC. Sir Alex Ferguson was undeterred though and finally got his man a year later for a fee of £4.4 million.
Blomqvist won a Premier League and FA Cup medal in 1999, scoring his only league goal for United in a 4-1 win against Everton. The winger went on to start against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final but was taken off after 67 minutes for Teddy Sheringham.
Little did anyone know that it would be Blomqvist’s last appearance in a Red Devils jersey, as he went under the knife three times in the next two seasons before moving to Everton.
While the Swedish international came out of retirement twice back home in 2008 and 2010, he has finally hung up his boots for good these days, apart from the odd charity game.
Blomqvist now aids his psychologist brother in delivering self-help talks for people handling setbacks. – ZK
Dwight Yorke
Discovered by then-manager Graham Taylor, Dwight Yorke started his football career with Aston Villa with a trial contract in 1989. He would end his time almost a decade later as one of the best marksmen the Midlands club has ever produced.
In 1998 Yorke helped orchestrate a move to Manchester United. The Villans didn’t want to lose their key talisman, but he eventually got his wish in a £12.6 million move.
He quickly established himself as the perfect attacking partner for Andy Cole, with the two forcing Teddy Sheringham onto the bench.
In his first season, the Trinidad and Tobago representative helped United to their famous treble. He ended his first season as the Premier League’s top scorer with 18 goals and despite failing to score in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich, he did score in the earlier rounds against Barcelona, Inter Milan and Juventus.
Video: watch Yorke and his teammates celebrate the semi-final victory over Juventus here
After spells with Blackburn Rovers, Birmingham City, Sydney FC – helping the Sky Blues to the first ever A-League title – and Sunderland, Yorke retired in 2009.
He completed his B coaching badge in 2011 and is currently working with Sky Sports as a pundit.
After Tim Sherwood’s sacking as Villa manager in October, Yorke declared he was the right man to fill the gap, but the club instead appointed Frenchman Remi Garde. – KT
Andy Cole
The deadly striker actually commenced his career at Arsenal, where he made his sole league appearance as a 19-year-old in 1990. Sold to Bristol City, he starred in the lower leagues before establishing himself at Newcastle United, who he helped earn promotion to the Premier League.
After two years with the Magpies, he was off to Old Trafford in a £7 million deal, which was a British record at the time.
His signing proved to be one of the most successful for Ferguson and the Red Devils, yet another in the long line of United players of the era to pick up a swag of winners’ medals.
In the 1998-99 season, he joined forces with Dwight Yorke and the duo helped themselves to 53 goals and a place in the Champions League final.
Like his main strike partner, Cole failed to get on the scoresheet in the decider and was eventually an 81st minute substitute for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Leaving United in 2001, he would spend another seven years plying his trade and retire in 2008 with over 500 appearances and more than 200 goals to his name.
Since retirement, he has had coaching roles at Manchester United and Huddersfield Town and worked in the media.
He was scheduled to appear in David Beckham’s match for charity this month, but revealed he was still recovering after suffering kidney failure in June this year. – KT
SUBSTITUTIONS
Teddy Sheringham (67th min sub for Blomqvist)
The ex-England international was signed as a replacement for the iconic Eric Cantona, but initially failed to meet expectations at Old Trafford as the club endured a trophy-less 1997-98 campaign.
Dwight Yorke’s arrival in August 1998 meant Sheringham’s role was then reduced to that of a regular substitute.
Nevertheless, the ex-Tottenham Hotspur striker got enough appearances to earn his first championship medal at the end of the 1998-99 season.
A week-and-a-half later, Sheringham got his hands on the highest honour in his playing career as he scored a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer then scored the winning goal in the dying minute to complete Manchester United’s treble.
Sheringham spent two more seasons at Old Trafford before his career took him back to Tottenham. He then continued to score goals at Portsmouth, West Ham and finally Colchester, where he retired following the 2007-08 season.
Trying his hand at the professional poker tour shortly after his retirement, he moved into coaching in an assistant role with West Ham in 2014.
This season he took a further step up, taking on a player-manager role with Stevenage in the fourth tier of English football. – KT
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (81st min sub for Cole)
Beginning his career at Norwegian third division club Clausenengen, Solskjaer’s 31 goals in 38 appearances over two seasons for first division side Molde brought him some European attention.
Linked with moves to Germany, Italy and England, Manchester United came calling with a £1.5 million bid during Euro 1996, which Molde accepted.
He would make well over 200 appearances for the Red Devils, although he never fully established himself in the first team, best known as an impact player off the bench.
That is where he made his name and is also a significant reason behind this particular FourFourTwo feature being produced – without Solskjaer’s injury-time winner in the 1999 Champions League final, who knows how that match would have ended?
Injury ultimately ended his career and he moved into coaching, first with United’s reserves and then back at Molde, who he led to consecutive league titles in 2011-12, the first in their history.
A short-lived time in charge of Cardiff City was followed by a return to Molde where he continues to show the magic touch. The Norwegians currently lead their Europa League group with 10 points through four matches.
Ajax, Celtic and Fenerbahce are the three other teams in their group. – JD
Sir Alex Ferguson
There are very few elements of the Ferguson story that aren’t already widely known. It has entered into folklore that he was on the verge of being sacked as United manager in 1990 following a string of poor results ahead of an FA Cup third round match against Nottingham Forest.
They ultimately won that match 1-0 and won the FA Cup, and the board’s faith was finally realised in 1993 when Ferguson led the club to a first league title in 26 years.
That kickstarted an extraordinary run where the Red Devils picked up silverware for fun. By the time Ferguson retired in 2013, they had surpassed Liverpool’s record for English titles and set a new benchmark of 20, adding two Champions League titles for good measure.
In retirement, he has released a couple of books and filled ambassadorial roles at United and with UEFA and also lectured at Harvard University.
He was also responsible for one of the few failings during his 26 years at Old Trafford, personally selecting David Moyes to be his successor. The former Everton man wasn’t given much time in charge, with the club ending his six-year contract after just 10 months. – JD
Watch the highlights of United's famous victory below
