Manchester United's Top 5 Centre-Back Partnerships of the EPL Era

Manchester United's best teams of the Premier League era have been built on solid centre-back partnerships.

Sir Alex Ferguson benefitted from two in particular, Steve Bruce's partnership with Gary Pallister and Rio Ferdinand's with Nemanja Vidic.

It's something Louis van Gaal is still trying to find after both Ferdinand and Vidic left Old Trafford in the summer.

Here's a rundown of United's top five centre-back pairings since the start of the Premier League. Feel free to use the comments section below to add your own.

Gary Pallister and David May

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David May signed for United from Blackburn in 1994 and was the first to break up Gary Pallister's partnership with Steve Bruce.

Bruce didn't leave Old Trafford until 1996. But it was May and Pallister who formed the backbone of United's defence during the second half of the 1995/96 season as Sir Alex Ferguson's side won the league and cup double, beating Liverpool 1-0 in the FA Cup final at Wembley.

Rio Ferdinand and Mikael Silvestre

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Rio Ferdinand arrived at Old Trafford for a record £29.1 million in the summer of 2002 to fill the void left by the sale of Jaap Stam. His first centre-back partner was Laurent Blanc, but it was another Frenchman, Mikael Silvestre, who stepped in during the second half of the 2002/03 season.

With Ferdinand and Silvestre at centre-half, United won nine of their final 10 Premier League games to pip Arsenal to the title.

Jaap Stam and Ronny Johnsen

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Ronny Johnsen's injury problems and Jaap Stam's relatively short stay at Old Trafford meant they didn't play that many games together as a pair. But they were there when it mattered most.

Johnsen and Stam were at centre-back as United beat Juventus 3-2 in Turin to book a place in the 1999 Champions League final. And they were together again for the final against Bayern Munich, although success that day owed as much to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as anything they did defensively.

Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister

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The rock on which United's first Premier League success was built in 1993. The pair combined to play more than 600 league games for United after Pallister arrived for a record £2.3 million fee from Middlesbrough in 1989.

They helped win the 1990 FA Cup, Sir Alex Ferguson's first trophy as United manager, and the 1991 Cup Winners' Cup final against Barcelona. They were also at the heart of the defence as United won the title in 1993 and the double in 1994.

Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic

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United's most successful centre-back partnership. They combined to play more than 750 games for United before both left Old Trafford at the end of last season. 

Ferdinand departed with 11 major honours, while Vidic collected 10. Their highlight was the 2008 Champions League final win against Chelsea in Moscow. They also helped United reach Champions League finals in 2009 and 2011, and they have 11 Premier League title medals between them.