Manchester United First Team: Defenders

2 Gary Neville, Age 34, Appearances: 569, Goals: 7

Neville's one of the most experienced players they Manchester United have at their club—he’s worn every shirt and won every medal so he needs to keep setting new challenges for himself.

I think every game he plays now he’ll treat with the utmost respect. He’s committed to the cause, full of endeavour and he’ll be looking for an injury-free season.

21 Rafael, Age 19, Appearances 28, Goals: 1

Rafael has been inspirational. He instantly connected with the fans and showed an enthusiasm that’s required for a footballer at United. But he has a lot of progress to make and there are still things in his game he’s learning.

He’ll gain that knowledge here— he’s intelligent, a quick learner and he wants to be a winner. Mentally he’s very strong and committed and he’s taken great strides in a short period of time. He’ll be looking to progress again and try and make the right back spot his own.

22 John O’Shea, Age 28, Appearances: 343 Goals: 14

O'Shea's one of the most underestimated footballers at the club. He’s an ever-present in the squad and always willing to do the job asked of him. He trains exceptionally hard and nobody has a bad word about his attitude. He’s a winner and loves being around the club, which is what we love.

It’s great to see John progressing—he’s a regular international now and his main aim will be to cement a regular place in the team. John’s versatility is a credit to him. Some say it can go against you but John has a strong mental approach to football. Whenever he’s picked he performs at the highest level.

5 Rio Ferdinand, Age 30, Appearances: 311 Goals 7

Ferdinand has found the club that really suits him. He’s found stability and a club that has been able to really bring the best out of him. He brings a quality to The Teams defending that not a lot of other clubs have.

That’s the reason Manxhester United invested so much time, effort and money to get him to the team. There are some good centre backs in England but Rio’s been producing consistently high performances for years now.

15 Nemanja Vidic Age 27 Appearances 153 Goals 12

Vidic's and Ferdinand's partnership has been second to none over the last few seasons and Nemanja had a particularly good season last term. He’s strong, powerful and we think he can get even better. He’s aggressive and has a real defender’s mentality.

He does that job well and at times he probably goes a little bit unseen, but he’s extremely committed to the cause. He also contributes at the other end from set-pieces because he attacks the ball so well.

6 Wes Brown, Age 29, Appearances: 318, Goals: 4

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?