But Eric Cantona doesn't make the team!
Saturday 4 October 2014 09:11, UK
Bryan Robson captained his country at the 1990 World Cup and wore the armband at Manchester United - but who were his best team-mates?
This week on The Fantasy Football Club the former midfielder picked a #One2Eleven of the top talent he played alongside...
PETER SCHMEICHEL: He's just slightly before Peter Shilton. Shilts was a fantastic goalkeeper with a fantastic record but I’m going for Peter Schmeichel because of his sheer presence. He always looked world class, he was brave and he’d dominate his back four as well.
PHIL NEAL: Loads of my mates were great right-backs, like Viv Anderson, but I’m going for Phil Neal because I think he could read the game unbelievably. He was a great passer of the ball and he could score goals as well. When you look back at his career with Liverpool and what he won, he was a top player. He liked a little bit of a drink on the quiet too!
DENIS IRWIN: We called him the quiet assassin. He was a left-back and he was taking penalties in a team full of Man United players. He’d take all of the free-kicks – it just shows what a class player he was. He was tough and quick.
PAUL McGRATH: This was really difficult because when I go back to when I first played at Man United I played with Gordon McQueen, Kevin Moran, Steve Bruce, Gary Pallister... But I called McGrath the Rolls-Royce, he was quick, strong, fantastic on the ball and had a better touch than anybody in our squad at that time. He was so skilful.
TONY ADAMS: A great reader of the game, a real strong defender. He was reasonable on the ball but was a great organiser.
STEVE COPPELL: This was difficult because I never played with Beckham or Ronaldo! When I played for England at first, Steve Coppell played on the right side for Man United and England. He was a great worker, whatever the manager asked him to do, he could do that role. He could work up and down and always knew what his role in the team was.
RYAN GIGGS: Just look at his record. Good banter around the dressing room – Giggsy had everything. He’d definitely be up there with the best players I’ve ever played with. He had great pace, he could run for fun, he could beat anybody at long-distance running. He had ability on the ball with his dribbling skills but he knew about the defensive part of the team, so Giggsy would track back and work for the team. When you beat people and dribble past them like George Best did or Giggs did then you need great balance and quick feet – Giggsy had all of that.
PAUL GASCOIGNE: I always say Gazza is the best player I’ve played with. In 1990 he was just unbelievable in the World Cup. Then you look at him from 1990-96 when he did great for England but his career in those six years, for me, he was challenging Maradona as the best player in the world at that time. It’s a shame because people go on about the problems he’s had off the pitch and don’t remember what a great player he was.
ROY KEANE: I’m putting Keane in to protect Gazza! He was a great captain, had great pace, strong in the tackle. He could score a goal and I think he’s a perfect balance with Gazza.
KEVIN KEEGAN: I know for a fact loads of Man United fans will say ‘where’s Cantona?’ But I've picked these because of their international careers, not just their club careers. Keegan was a workhorse, he worked really hard for the team. Great ability.
GARY LINEKER: He was one of the best goal-scorers I’ve seen. We’d all say whether you play golf or you want to become a great footballer, when you’re talking to kids, 'practise, practise, practise to make yourself better' – but Lineker? As soon as training was over, he’d be off for a shower! He never practised his finishing but you look at his record and the goal-scorer he was. He was really clever at running across the front post and he had great feet to connect with the ball the way he wanted to.
