Right from the early days, United have produced players to catch the imagination, men who could play the team game but who stood out as characters in their own right, entertainers who flourished on the great stage of Old Trafford.

The toothpick chewing Billy Meredith was a Welsh wizard at the turn of the century who also found time to help establish the players' union.The halfback line of Duckworth, Roberts and Bell were revered for the way they introduced United's first great era of success with two Championships and an FA Cup win before the First World War.So it has continued down the years with Sir Matt Busby building three great teams. The likes of Johnny Carey, Stan Pearson, Jack "Gunner" Rowley, Johnny Morris and Charlie Mitten brought Busby his first trophy in 1948 and who knows what his Babes like Duncan Edwards, Roger Byrne, Eddie Colman, Tommy Taylor and David Pegg would have gone on to achieve but for the tragedy of the Munich air crash in 1958.

The Swinging Sixties produced Sir Bobby Charlton, Denis Law and George Best as well as Nobby Stiles, Pat Crerand, Bill Foulkes and Alex Stepney as Manchester United became champions of Europe.Today Alex Ferguson leads the way into the new Millennium with a host of new stars like Roy Keane, Dwight Yorke and Ryan Giggs, and young English lions such as David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville.All the classic United hallmarks remain ... youth, courage, flair and international star quality, always with special players.