Our Greatest Era?

Moby

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For the purpose of this thread an era is defined as a particular set of players playing together for a good amount of time. Following will make it clear:

Busby's pre-munich era - our Busby Babes team
Holy Trinity era - The European Cup winning team
Robson's era - The 80s unit
Early PL era - Cantona-led United
Treble era - 98-2001
Early 00s - 01-06
Ronaldo era - 06-09
Any other

For me, it is very close between the Cantona era and Ronaldo era.
 

Theonas

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I think our best era in terms of quality of the team was the Ronaldo era. What that team achieved and could have if it wasn't for the greatest side of all time was simply remarkable. For the romance, context, drama and general narrative, nothing will ever beat the 1968 winners. What they had to overcome and how it was all rounded off by that European Cup is a major part of what makes us the behemoth we are today.
 

Bojan11

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98-2001 for me because of the treble and we made a very good Arsenal team look average in the league by winning it three times on the trot. Two of them with ease.

Where as 06-09 era team had the Chelsea team under Mourinho to contend with for one season. Then Grant took over. Yeah that team performed well in Europe, but it was also a time when Madrid, Bayern and Juve were rebuilding. The only big European team that was actually performing was Barca otherwise it was the English clubs.

That 98-2001 came up against very good Bayern, Madrid and Juve teams.
 

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there are only realistically 3 contenders for greatest era and its obviously the periods around the times we won the European Cup

I wouldnt call the last one the 'Ronaldo era' though seeing as it should stretch to 2011 - 3 CL finals in 4 years was a great achievement even if we did lose 2

on a personal level I would pick out the 'Treble Era' - just because its the one with the best memories for me
 

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The ‘Ronaldo era’ :lol: would not call it that. The 98-01 era was maybe the best for United. The treble followed by two years of complete domination. But then I think our greatest team was the 2008 team because of the outstanding defence so it’s hard to pick.

The 55-58 era must be in with a shout. Two league titles in a row with an average age of 22 and the first English team into Europe getting to the semi-finals 2 years in a row...which possibly would have been more in 58. 2 FA Cup finals in a row as well. You could argue that that team would have completely dominated home and abroad for years. We will never know.
 

Bubz27

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In and around this ''Ronaldo Era" we went 2 seasons where we were 2-3 wins away from trebles. If we'd drawn v Milan in that 2nd leg and won the final that's the CL. For the FA Cup we needed to beat Chelsea in the final.

Then in 08, if we'd beaten Pompey at home we'd have had the easiest run to win the cup ever.

In terms of the title, over 5 years we won 3, lost one on goal difference and the other by a point.

That was our best ever team.
 

automaticflare

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I have no doubt the early cantona team beats our Ronaldo team every day

———--schmeichel————-
Parker-Bruce-pallister-Irwin
Kanchelskis-ince-keane-Giggs
————-cantona-Hughes———


————-Edwin—————
Brown-rio—-vidic——evra
Hargreaves-carrick-scholes
Tevez—rooney— Ronaldo

That top team Never got a chance to prove themselves in Europe to be honest with the foreigner rule but our tactics were also way too gung ho which was something fergie admitted later on
 

amolbhatia50k

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3 years seems too short for an era.

Rooney era seems more apt than Ronaldo era.
 

Bobski

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I have no doubt the early cantona team beats our Ronaldo team every day

———--schmeichel————-
Parker-Bruce-pallister-Irwin
Kanchelskis-ince-keane-Giggs
————-cantona-Hughes———


————-Edwin—————
Brown-rio—-vidic——evra
Hargreaves-carrick-scholes
Tevez—rooney— Ronaldo

That top team Never got a chance to prove themselves in Europe to be honest with the foreigner rule but our tactics were also way too gung ho which was something fergie admitted later on
Watched both eras and loved the 94 team as a kid, but they were nowhere near good enough defensively to cope with top end European teams, which is what the 08 era team was. They were brilliant to watch, dynamic counter attacking side but 08 team was much more astute in how it managed a game.

2008>99>94.
 

harms

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Definitely our Rooney-Scholes-Rio-Vidic era.
From 06/07 to the last CL final; even though we lost our best player in Ronaldo we continued to be more than impressive with the same core team.
 

Mal donaghy

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90s, we virtually reinvented football, when the backpass rule came in. The opposition were scared of taking corners, cause once we got possession, a few quick passes or a quick throw from Big Pete and it would be a goal to us! Lightning fast football.
 

shamans

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Rooney, Ronaldo, Scholes, Vidic, Ferdinand... You know where I am going with this. What a side. What a unit! This is the best United line up I have ever seen (in terms of pure entertainment and enjoyment)

------------Saha---Rooney--------
--Giggs----Scholes---Carrick---Ronaldo---
---Evra-----Vidic---Ferdinand----Neville---
------------------VDS---------------------
 

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I wouldnt call the last one the 'Ronaldo era' though seeing as it should stretch to 2011 - 3 CL finals in 4 years was a great achievement even if we did lose 2
Wasn't the 2011 team a lot weaker though? They only got 80 points in the league, they got to the CL final but it was a pretty easy draw to get there.
 

2cents

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In and around this ''Ronaldo Era" we went 2 seasons where we were 2-3 wins away from trebles. If we'd drawn v Milan in that 2nd leg and won the final that's the CL. For the FA Cup we needed to beat Chelsea in the final.

Then in 08, if we'd beaten Pompey at home we'd have had the easiest run to win the cup ever.

In terms of the title, over 5 years we won 3, lost one on goal difference and the other by a point.

That was our best ever team.
We were three wins away from winning every competition we entered in 08/09 (inc. the Super Cup and World Championship) - two FA Cup ties and the CL final.

The last stat sounds better if you phrase it as "over 7 years we won 5..."
 

Edgar Allan Pillow

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1. Trinity era - Simply because we had 3 Balon d'Ors in our team. Lay in 1964, Charlton in 1966 and Best in 1968 plus European Success
2. Ronaldo era - Again Balon d'Or + European Success. And 2008 is probably the best damn team in recent memory!
3. Cantona era - Turning point in club history
 

Bubz27

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We were three wins away from winning every competition we entered in 08/09 (inc. the Super Cup and World Championship) - two FA Cup ties and the CL final.

The last stat sounds better if you phrase it as "over 7 years we won 5..."
I always forget about that FA Cuo semi final for some reason.

So we were 2 points away from winning 7 consecutive titles??
 

paulscholes18

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Busby Babes - that side had the potential of becoming a dynasty
Holy Trinity era
06-09 Ronaldo era
Treble Era
Cantona’s United
Robson’s era
Early 00’s
 

Jaybomb

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History suggests that it’s the 98/99 team. It was nothing short of extraordinary.

Unfortunately I was only 5 years old back then and wasn’t able to fully appreciate the magic.

The 2008 team with Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez gets my vote. Absolute world class team. Watching Ronaldo play for us was an absolute privilege. A part of me is sad that the younger generation of United fans didn’t get to witness him in his younger days. Every time he got the ball, it was like something amazing was about to happen. The flair, trickery and arrogance was unheard of at United before Cristiano came along.
 

Green_Red

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94 - 00

Two doubles and a treble. Hard to eclipse that. Best team we've ever had.

Would love to see that 99 team vs the 08 team and 68 team. And the 08 team vs the 68 team.

Three magical teams.

But based on the eras in the OP it has to be 99 team. A treble is a big achievement. Whether its a better team is debateable. I think a lot of teams would find it hard to beat the 99 starting XI.
 

Giggs86

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06/07 - 10/11.

07/08 - 08/09 was the peak where we had a rock solid defense and a ruthless attack.

06/07 was the most enjoyable though football wise and also because it was the season where everything suddenly glued together. The fluid attack came at the expense of defensive naivety at times but we were such an enjoyable side to watch.
 

Giggs86

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94 - 00

Two doubles and a treble. Hard to eclipse that. Best team we've ever had.

Would love to see that 99 team vs the 08 team and 68 team. And the 08 team vs the 68 team.

Three magical teams.

But based on the eras in the OP it has to be 99 team. A treble is a big achievement. Whether its a better team is debateable. I think a lot of teams would find it hard to beat the 99 starting XI.
We were one bizarre game away vs Pompey from winning the treble in 08. If That game was replayed it would end 5-0 9/10 times. Also, looking at the big picture and our league finishes between 06/07 and Fergie's last season, when we didn't win the league we finished second twice, one point behind to Chelsea and losing on GD to city. We were two league points and arguably the best club team of all times in Barca away from having 7 straight PL titles and 3 CL titles in 7 years (maybe even 4 CL titles because if we'd not lose to Milan in that semi final we'd easily beat a poor Liverpool side in the final).
 

Cassady

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I have no doubt the early cantona team beats our Ronaldo team every day

———--schmeichel————-
Parker-Bruce-pallister-Irwin
Kanchelskis-ince-keane-Giggs
————-cantona-Hughes———


————-Edwin—————
Brown-rio—-vidic——evra
Hargreaves-carrick-scholes
Tevez—rooney— Ronaldo

That top team Never got a chance to prove themselves in Europe to be honest with the foreigner rule but our tactics were also way too gung ho which was something fergie admitted later on

Ince and Keane in central midfield at the same time. feck me. Thats pretty good. Similar to Case and Souness. Not many players would be up for competing against either of the two.
 

Cassady

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We were one bizarre game away vs Pompey from winning the treble in 08. If That game was replayed it would end 5-0 9/10 times. Also, looking at the big picture and our league finishes between 06/07 and Fergie's last season, when we didn't win the league we finished second twice, one point behind to Chelsea and losing on GD to city. We were two league points and arguably the best club team of all times in Barca away from having 7 straight PL titles and 3 CL titles in 7 years (maybe even 4 CL titles because if we'd not lose to Milan in that semi final we'd easily beat a poor Liverpool side in the final).
It doesn't work like that though.

Liverpool could 've had four doubles in five seasons. 85/86 we done it. 87/88 we won the league but Aldridge missed a pen and we had a goal ruled out in the final. 88/89 we won the cup but that last gasp Arsenal goal at Anfield. 89/90 we won the league but Palace got a fluke of a goal to knock us out the semis and we deffo would've beaten that shit United side in the final.
 

Billy Blaggs

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History suggests that it’s the 98/99 team. It was nothing short of extraordinary.

Unfortunately I was only 5 years old back then and wasn’t able to fully appreciate the magic.

The 2008 team with Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez gets my vote. Absolute world class team. Watching Ronaldo play for us was an absolute privilege. A part of me is sad that the younger generation of United fans didn’t get to witness him in his younger days. Every time he got the ball, it was like something amazing was about to happen. The flair, trickery and arrogance was unheard of at United before Cristiano came along.
What?!
 

Green_Red

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We were one bizarre game away vs Pompey from winning the treble in 08. If That game was replayed it would end 5-0 9/10 times. Also, looking at the big picture and our league finishes between 06/07 and Fergie's last season, when we didn't win the league we finished second twice, one point behind to Chelsea and losing on GD to city. We were two league points and arguably the best club team of all times in Barca away from having 7 straight PL titles and 3 CL titles in 7 years (maybe even 4 CL titles because if we'd not lose to Milan in that semi final we'd easily beat a poor Liverpool side in the final).
Yea but that 99 team had sustained success for a much longer period and they didnt slip up against anyone in a bizarre way so we could talk about what ifs. They actually won the treble.

As good as Rooney, Tevez and Ronaldo were going forward they werent as good as Beckham, Yorke, Cole and Giggs in their pomp. And they didnt have Ole and Sheringham on the bench.

Carrick and Scholes were brilliant with Hargreaves and Anderson on the bench, but a midfield of Keane and Scholes at their peak would destroy any combination of those 4. Tbe link up play between Keane and Scholes is never really discussed but they were the perfect duo, and the short passi g between them was quality. Keanes ability to forward pass into the strikers on the ground was as good as it gets too, which is never spoken about. He always looked forward, and that was before his hip issues too, it was after 02 that he became a more sitting midfielder.

Defensively Irwin was our best ever LB. Stam > Vidic, 12 out of 10 times, as good as Vidic was.

If you took that 99 team and replaced plahers from 08...
Schmeichel v Van Der Sar... thats a debate
Stam stays
Irwin stays
G.Neville 99 stays
Keane stays
Scholes 99 stays
Giggs 99 stays
Beckham v Ronaldo, Ronaldo gets in
Yorke and Cole, would you replace them? I probably wouldnt. It would be hard not to put Rooney in but the combination of Cole and Yorke, you couldnt break that up.
Vidic / Ferdinand gets in with Stam.

Ive only ever seen highlights of the 68 team so I couldnt even compare on anything other than legend.
 
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Giggs86

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Yea but that 99 team had sustained success for a much longer period and they didnt slip up against anyone in a bizarre way so we could talk about what ifs. They actually won the treble.

As good as Rooney, Tevez and Ronaldo were going forward they werent as good as Beckham, Yorke, Cole and Giggs in their pomp. And they didnt have Ole and Sheringham on the bench.

Carrick and Scholes were brilliant with Hargreaves and Anderson on the bench, but a midfield of Keane and Scholes at their peak would destroy any combination of those 4. Tbe link up play between Keane and Scholes is never really discussed but they were the perfect duo, and the short passi g between them was quality. Keanes ability to forward pass into the strikers on the ground was as good as it gets too, which is never spoken about. He always looked forward, and that was before his hip issues too, it was after 02 that he became a more sitting midfielder.

Defensively Irwin was our best ever LB. Stam > Vidic, 12 out of 10 times, as good as Vidic was.

If you took that 99 team and replaced plahers from 08...
Schmeichel v Van Der Sar... thats a debate
Stam stays
Irwin stays
G.Neville 99 stays
Keane stays
Scholes 99 stays
Giggs 99 stays
Beckham v Ronaldo, Ronaldo gets in
Yorke and Cole, would you replace them? I probably wouldnt. It would be hard not to put Rooney in but the combination of Cole and Yorke, you couldnt break that up.
Vidic / Ferdinand gets in with Stam.

Ive only ever seen highlights of the 68 team so I couldnt even compare on anything other than legend.
When you say that the 99 team had sustained success for a much longer period, do you mean the stretch between 94-99 or between the first title until the last pre-Ronaldo title in the early 00's? In any case, as dominant as that side was domestically, we probably underachieved a bit in Europe, while the 06-11 side have won 4/5 PL titles and reached 3 CL finals plus one semi-final on top of that.

Individually you may rate Stam higher than Vidic, which is debatable, but in Vidic's defense he stayed with us longer, won more trophies with us, and was part of the best defensive unit probably in the PL history. As a unit, I'd have to choose VDS-Evra-Vidic-Rio over Schmeichel-Irwin-Stam-Neville.

I would go with the defensive unit of 08 plus Neville -
VDS
Evra
Vidic
Rio
Neville 99

The midfield of 99 -
Giggs
Keane
Scholes
Beckham

Ronaldo-Rooney / Yorke Cole - as you said it's hard to break up that Yorke-Cole partnership on one hand, but on the other hand the individual quality of Ronaldo and Rooney was on another level.
 

amolbhatia50k

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Wasn't the 2011 team a lot weaker though? They only got 80 points in the league, they got to the CL final but it was a pretty easy draw to get there.
We kept winning big trophies though. And Rooney was a constant throughout.
 

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We kept winning big trophies though. And Rooney was a constant throughout.
Only 1 PL in the 3 years after Ronaldo left compared with 3 PLs and 1 CL in the 3 years before is a big difference, when I think of that great United team I think of 2006 to 2009, not until 2011 or 2013 but I'm guessing that will vary from person to person as you guys lost a few close title races in that time.
 

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It has to be the treble era for me, lots of memories in it and the class of 92' has my one and only one all time most favourite player - DB7 :)
 

amolbhatia50k

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Only 1 PL in the 3 years after Ronaldo left compared with 3 PLs and 1 CL in the 3 years before is a big difference, when I think of that great United team I think of 2006 to 2009, not until 2011 or 2013 but I'm guessing that will vary from person to person as you guys lost a few close title races in that time.
1 in 3? Or 2 in 4 given we won the league right after that in SAFs last season? Despite Ronaldo leaving, we continued to win big trophies and reach CL finals losing only to City on goal difference in the league and Barcelona in the final of the CL. Of course our team was at its peak prior to that but it's the same era. Most of the playerd were the same and continued performing and achieving. One player doesn't define an era unless he was there for a successful decade or something. The Ronaldo era makes more sense for Real. For United, Giggs, Cantona, Keane, Scholes, SAF or possibly even Rooney can define eras.
 

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1 in 3? Or 2 in 4 given we won the league right after that in SAFs last season? Despite Ronaldo leaving, we continued to win big trophies and reach CL finals losing only to City on goal difference in the league and Barcelona in the final of the CL. Of course our team was at its peak prior to that but it's the same era. Most of the playerd were the same and continued performing and achieving. One player doesn't define an era unless he was there for a successful decade or something. The Ronaldo era makes more sense for Real. For United, Giggs, Cantona, Keane, Scholes, SAF or possibly even Rooney can define eras.
That's fair enough but people talk about Pep's Barcelona and that only lasted 3 great years, I don't think the time it lasted should really matter. Just like the Barcelona team went down a level after Pep left, the same happened with Ronaldo. What's the time frame you'd use to define that United era then? 2006-2011? 2006-13?
 
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DRM

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For me it will always be the 99 treble winning side, purely because I have such wonderful memories as a kid watching that United team in full swing with the likes of yorke, Cole Becks, giggs etc.