How good was Paul Ince

[Jeppers7]

Is he the most underrated player in the history of Manchester United? He was a phenomenal player. Even in 93 and 94 when Eric got all the attention, Paul Ince for me was our driving force week in week out 8/9 out of 10 performances. Keane took a back seat to Ince in his first season at the club, but what a pair.

Ince could do everything to a high standard, but his drive from the edge of our own box to the opposition box, his passing, shooting and tackling made him outstanding and he was a real big game player and leader.

I think there’s a few elements that make him overlooked, signing for Liverpool being the biggest, Fergie did him no favours but he sold him because he didn’t like his character but then made up bollocks about the type of player he was v the type of player he thought he was. Nonsense because he was t the player Fergie described at all.

Recency bias aside I see a lot of talk of Carrick and yes he was a decent player for us but I was on another planet. He was an absolutely huge piece of the team that won the league after 26 years, and our first double the next season, one of the main reasons, plus our first European trophy in 23 years that was a catalyst for everything that followed.

2 league titles
2 fa cups
1 ECWC
1 League cup

For me he sits slightly, literally, behind the top tier of Keane, Scholes, Robson for us in my lifetime.

Superb player.

 

[Catch]

ince and carrick are different players. but for me ince was a much better player.
Ince became a little less respected (similar to kanchelskis) because they were culled to make way for the class of 92. and it can be argued were replaced by (soon to be) superior players in Beckham and Scholes.

and i would agree, i would only have keane, scholes and robson definately ahead of him.

 

[RedChisel]

My favourite player growing up and the only name I've ever had on the back of a shirt. Was devastated when he left. An absolute beast and Rolls Royce of a player.

 

[Rood]

He was undoubtedly a top player, dirtied his CV with time in Scouseland and the 'Big time Charlie' nickname always stuck

 

[didz]

Is he the most underrated player in the history of Manchester United? He was a phenomenal player. Even in 93 and 94 when Eric got all the attention, Paul Ince for me was our driving force week in week out 8/9 out of 10 performances. Keane took a back seat to Ince in his first season at the club, but what a pair.

Ince could do everything to a high standard, but his drive from the edge of our own box to the opposition box, his passing, shooting and tackling made him outstanding and he was a real big game player and leader.

I think there’s a few elements that make him overlooked, signing for Liverpool being the biggest, Fergie did him no favours but he sold him because he didn’t like his character but then made up bollocks about the type of player he was v the type of player he thought he was. Nonsense because he was t the player Fergie described at all.

Recency bias aside I see a lot of talk of Carrick and yes he was a decent player for us but I was on another planet. He was an absolutely huge piece of the team that won the league after 26 years, and our first double the next season, one of the main reasons, plus our first European trophy in 23 years that was a catalyst for everything that followed.

2 league titles
2 fa cups
1 ECWC
1 League cup

For me he sits slightly, literally, behind the top tier of Keane, Scholes, Robson for us in my lifetime.

Superb player.

The jig is up, Paul. Can't believe this is what you're doing now.

 

[Zed 101]

Loved Paul Ince, probably more than I did Keano at the time (not saying he was better just liked him more), would be a red card magnet in the modern game, very combative and progressive player, wish we had him in this team, would be the best midfielder by a country mile

 

[MancunianAngels]

Ince was superb.

His reputation was soured in the minds of United fans when he went to Liverpool.

I always felt that was a tad unfair as we had first refusal if he were to leave Inter but chose not to sign him in the summer of 97. His family wanted to move back from Italy and Liverpool were the only other English club that could afford him.

Kind of ironically though, Keane was injured a few weeks into 97/98 so Ince was probably needed that year.

 

[next_number_seven]

This game gives a good idea of his quality.
Watch his pace bursting forward on 1st and 3rd goal.
His family are from Barbados so has sprinters genetics.
Himself and Keane made for a powerful midfield pairing.

That team for the first two PL wins had loads of pace in Giggs, Sharpe, Kanchelskis, Ince.
Then Cantona knitted everything together.

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

Ince was far better than Michael Carrick and a genuine top class talent and performer. No player who wasn't a genuine world class performer was brought to with a high fee nor succeeded in the mid 90s Serie A. If he were playing now he'd be rated pretty close to or at a Rodri level.

 

[next_number_seven]

Ince was far better than Michael Carrick and a genuine top class talent and performer. No player who wasn't a genuine world class performer was brought to with a high fee nor succeeded in the mid 90s Serie A. If he were playing now he'd be rated pretty close to or at a Rodri level.

He's a different type of player from a different era so impossible to compare him to Carrick.

Carrick got us into 3 CL finals. He was one of the best in the world in his speciality position.

Ince is more comparable to Kante maybe.

 

[Red the Bear]

The fact that he left and still performed at a very high level in serie a when it was most heavyweight league around should be enough to tell you how good he was.

I'm not exactly sure if Fergie made the right decision by binning him when he did, sure he was vindicated by us winning again when he did but perhaps we could have been even better with him still with us.

 

[Oranges038]

This game gives a good idea of his quality.
Watch his pace bursting forward on 1st and 3rd goal.
His family are from Barbados so has sprinters genetics.
Himself and Keane made for a powerful midfield pairing.

That team for the first two PL wins had loads of pace in Giggs, Sharpe, Kanchelskis, Ince.
Then Cantona knitted everything together.

The speed of break and the movement and one touch football for that second goal is just so good.

Ince was a fantastic player, he was just an all-rounder who could do everything required of a midfielder back then to such a high standard. He was incredibly intelligent and great at reading the game, he had pace, skill and he was as tough as they come. A bit like Keane I think he is often overlooked for his quality on the ball which is a shame as that's what made them much better than the other players in their position in the league.

 

[brontelicious]

Always have a special place in our hearts for that point at Anfield.

A crucial contribution to our Treble.

 

[KeanoMagicHat]

He does seem a bit of a forgotten man sometimes, despite being United's player of the year the first PL, 3 straight Premier League team of the years and PL team of the first decade of the PL. Going to Liverpool didn't help, or falling the other side of the Class of 92 narrative.

He's a different type of player from a different era so impossible to compare him to Carrick.

Carrick got us into 3 CL finals. He was one of the best in the world in his speciality position.

Ince is more comparable to Kante maybe.

Carrick hardly "got" United into 3 CL finals, he was a good member of the team that wasn't one of the key players. You wouldn't say Gabi got Atletico Madrid into 2 CL finals.

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

He's a different type of player from a different era so impossible to compare him to Carrick.

I strongly disagree. Both were DMs and frankly I don't believe there is any aspect of it Carrick was better than him in.

Carrick got us into 3 CL finals. He was one of the best in the world in his speciality position.

In a period when the EPL was the strongest league in Europe and Manchester United were not hampered by the 3 foreign player rule in Europe.

Also make no mistake about it. Ince was one of the very best on the planet in his position. That is why a mid 90s Serie A giant sort him out as a signing.

Carrick UCL record imos is not a valid scale to use to attempt to place him above Ince.

Ince is more comparable to Kante maybe.

Not at all. Ince was an excellent deep lying passer with tough tackling and running power. More like a hybrid of Peak Casemiro + an ability to pass like a Carrick/Xabi Alonso. Kante is a more refined version of peak Genaro Gatusso.

 

[next_number_seven]

The speed of break and the movement and one touch football for that second goal is just so good.

Ince was a fantastic player, he was just an all-rounder who could do everything required of a midfielder back then to such a high standard. He was incredibly intelligent and great at reading the game, he had pace, skill and he was as tough as they come. A bit like Keane I think he is often overlooked for his quality on the ball which is a shame as that's what made them much better than the other players in their position in the league.

The goal at 2:35 here!
Never seen it before. Must be GOTS contender.

 

[next_number_seven]

He does seem a bit of a forgotten man sometimes, despite being United's player of the year the first PL, 3 straight Premier League team of the years and PL team of the first decade of the PL. Going to Liverpool didn't help, or falling the other side of the Class of 92 narrative.



Carrick hardly "got" United into 3 CL finals, he was a good member of the team that wasn't one of the key players. You wouldn't say Gabi got Atletico Madrid into 2 CL finals.

Carrick was a key player. Extremely intelligent player who hardly made a mistake. Compare him to Casemiro with his sloppy passing and tackles and Casemiro made FIFA team of the year last year and Carricks miles better.

See Scholes interview with Neville when asked about Gerrard, Lampard and Scholes playing for England. Scholes said they all needed Carrick beside them.

 

[next_number_seven]

I strongly disagree. Both were DMs and frankly I don't believe there is any aspect of it Carrick was better than him in.


In a period when the EPL was the strongest league in Europe and Manchester United were not hampered by the 3 foreign player rule in Europe.

Also make no mistake about it. Ince was one of the very best on the planet in his position. That is why a mid 90s Serie A giant sort him out as a signing.

Carrick UCL record imos is not a valid scale to use to attempt to place him above Ince.

Not at all. Ince was an excellent deep lying passer with tough tackling and running power. More like a hybrid of Peak Casemiro + an ability to pass like a Carrick/Xabi Alonso. Kante is a more refined version of peak Genaro Gatusso.

Ince was box to box midfielder. Maybe Gerrard's a better comparison.

But he's completely different to Carrick. Carrick was like Busquets

 

[KeanoMagicHat]

Carrick was a key player.

See Scholes interview with Neville when asked about Gerrard, Lampard and Scholes playing for England. Scholes said they all needed Carrick beside them.

I agree with Scholes there regarding England, but that's about team balance because England wouldn't play any CDMs, United were different, doesn't mean he was the reason United got to CL finals. The key to United's team was Vidic, Ferdinand CBs and Rooney, Ronaldo in attack in particular, it's not like without Carrick they would have had no chance of getting to any CL finals. I remember at the time people considered United's midfield the weakest part of their team.

Just to bring it back to Ince, if you replace Ince with Carrick those three seasons, then I don't doubt United still make it there.

 

[Oranges038]

The goal at 2:35 here!
Never seen it before. Must be GOTS contender.

Ridiculous strike. The scissor volley at 1.50 and there's a few overhead goals in there as well.

 

[GlasgowCeltic]

he was the best midfielder in the Prem before leaving

 

[matherto]

Is there a particular Youtube video that shows us him best?

I could just sit there and watch every match on MUTV but

 

[Remember the geese]

Almost a forgotten man. Top player. Very underrated. The English Davids?

 

[Zen86]

He never really shook off the big time Charlie label, which is sad because he was a great player.

 

[next_number_seven]

I agree with Scholes there regarding England, but that's about team balance because England wouldn't play any CDMs, United were different, doesn't mean he was the reason United got to CL finals. The key to United's team was Vidic, Ferdinand CBs and Rooney, Ronaldo in attack in particular, it's not like without Carrick they would have had no chance of getting to any CL finals. I remember at the time people considered United's midfield the weakest part of their team.

Just to bring it back to Ince, if you replace Ince with Carrick those three seasons, then I don't doubt United still make it there.

Carrick was a key player. He took the ball off the defence and used it well.

When we went on that clean sheet record, that was partly due to Carrick.

 

[ifightdragons]

Ince is certainly underrated. He was an excellent box-to-box midfielder.

Not only was he physically great, but his in-game mentality was superb. A nightmare for the opposition, I'd imagine. I personally consider him a club legend, no matter if he went to Liverpool. They were the only viable option for him at a stage where he wanted to move back with his family to England. We should have just re-signed him instead.

 

[golden_blunder]

Coincidentally I watched an ince reel on Facebook earlier, reminded what a dominant midfielder he really was. Had it all

 

[Revaulx]

Ince was great. A shame how it ended, but I have no doubt that Fergie was right.

I’m not sure whether he was “better” than Carrick; they were very different players. In our current state I reckon prime Ince would be a more effective signing than prime Carrick though.

 

[Desert Eagle]

Better than Gerrard.

 

[Jeppers7]

The jig is up, Paul. Can't believe this is what you're doing now.

Maybe I was just on another planet. Maybe it was the LSD?

 

[#07]

Ince was so good. Its a bit of a shame that every time I think of him I see him celebrating in front of the Kop cos he thought he'd derailed the treble. Hard for me to be objective as a result. Still, when you think about some of his performances e.g., England in Rome in 1997 (was it?). Top player.

 

[Frank Grimes]

Very good player, much better than Butt so really was no need to let him go in my opinion.

 

[Jeppers7]

Carrick was a key player. He took the ball off the defence and used it well.

When we went on that clean sheet record, that was partly due to Carrick.

VDS, Vidic, Rio, Giggs, Rooney, Tevez were two levels above Carrick. Scholes and Ronaldo about four levels above him. But yeah Carrick was the reason. Ince was levels above. Carrick was a good player. Nothing more. He was a cog.

 

[Gordon Godot]

Very good player, much better than Butt so really was no need to let him go in my opinion.

I seem to remember he wanted out, think there was a bit of a clash with Fergie given his ego. His work rate in midfield was astonishing, we would dominate the ball for long periods and whenever we lost it it seemed he immediately won it back. A great player, shame he left when he did.

 

[Frank Grimes]

I seem to remember he wanted out, think there was a bit of a clash with Fergie given his ego. His work rate in midfield was astonishing, we would dominate the ball for long periods and whenever we lost it it seemed he immediately won it back. A great player, shame he left when he did.

No he was sold behind the scenes. Fergie pulled him off the golf course and informed him United had accepted a bid for him.

 

[Oranges038]

No he was sold behind the scenes. Fergie pulled him off the golf course and informed him United had accepted a bid for him.

Aye it was mostly because he was 26/27 and was still calling himself "the Guv'ner", SAF spoke about it years ago, it was all to do with personality and balance within the squad.

 

[Frank Grimes]

Aye it was mostly because he was 26/27 and was still calling himself "the Guv'ner", SAF spoke about it years ago, it was all to do with personality and balance within the squad.

He was big mates with Giggs so maybe there was issues going on there that we're nor privvy to.
Guvnor was just a bit of fun, bit childish getting bent out of shape over that tbh.

 

[mu4c_20le]

Very good player, much better than Butt so really was no need to let him go in my opinion.

He was a big time charlie who never would've accepted being Keane's backup

 

[Murder on Zidane's Floor]

Anyone know about his time at Inter, how did he get on?

 

[Frank Grimes]

Anyone know about his time at Inter, how did he get on?

They loved him there, he was a top player. Excellent for England too in 96 and 98.