In a video segment published by GOAL Global, Van der Sar was asked to choose from a group of legendary goalkeepers. While he initially leaned toward Gianluigi Buffon—citing his longevity and consistency—the Dutchman playfully ended up selecting himself as the best ever. His light-hearted response came after careful consideration of several icons in the position.

Alongside Buffon, Van der Sar praised the legacy of numerous greats, including Lev Yashin, Jean-Marie Pfaff, Peter Shilton, Gordon Banks, Sepp Maier, and Dino Zoff. According to ESPN, he acknowledged the distinct qualities of each, showing his deep respect for the evolution of goalkeeping and its history across different eras.

@goalglobal Edwin van der Sar chooses the greatest goalkeeper ever in winner stays on 🥊 Van der Sar was speaking to GOAL on behalf of bet365, Official Global Partner of the UEFA Champions League #football #championsleague #manchesterunited #soccer #vandersar ♬ original sound – GOAL

Van Der Sar names greatest Manchester United player of all time

When asked to name the greatest player in Manchester United history, Van der Sar faced another difficult challenge. The shortlist included global icons like Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, George Best, Denis Law, and Sir Bobby Charlton—names that define the club’s decorated past. Yet, the former United goalkeeper made a surprising and thoughtful selection.

In a similar GOAL video format, Van der Sar ultimately picked Paul Scholes as the club’s all-time greatest player. While admitting the choice wasn’t easy, he emphasized Scholes’ intelligence, technical ability, and impact on the pitch as key reasons behind his decision—marking an unexpected but respectful tribute to the legendary midfielder.

Van der Sar’s career path

Van der Sar began his professional journey with Ajax in 1990, where he quickly emerged as the club’s first-choice goalkeeper. During his nine seasons in Amsterdam, he helped the team win multiple Eredivisie titles and lifted the UEFA Champions League in 1995. His ability to read the game, distribute the ball, and lead from the back helped shape the role of the modern goalkeeper.

In 1999, he joined Juventus, becoming the first non-Italian goalkeeper to regularly start for the club. Though his time in Turin featured some challenges—including intense competition and inconsistent form—it offered him further experience in top-tier European soccer. After two seasons, he sought a fresh start in the English Premier League.

Under Sir Alex Ferguson, Van der Sar became a cornerstone of one of the most successful Manchester United sides in recent history. He won four Premier League titles, two League Cups, and the 2008 UEFA Champions League. His iconic penalty save in the final against Chelsea remains one of the most celebrated moments of his soccer career.

Van der Sar retired in 2011 at age 40, having earned more than 130 caps for the Netherlands and building a reputation as one of football’s most consistent and composed goalkeepers. Since retiring, he has taken on executive roles at Ajax, contributing significantly to the club’s growth both on and off the pitch.

The Red Devils will finish trophyless for the fifth season in a row, which explains how muchthey’ve been struggling for a long time. This season was supposed to see United get back to European or domestic prominence but none of those things have happened.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was fired early in the season but the appointment of Ralf Rangnick as interim manager until the summer has not worked out as expected. Manchester United have once again let their fans down, which is why club legendsRio Ferdinand and Paul Scholes made their voicesheardafter yet another frustration.

Paul Scholes takes shot at Ralf Rangnick after Man United’s UCL loss

Manchester United might be a giant but their best days are far behind them. If someone knows a thing or two about the club’s glory days, that is Paul Scholes. The former midfielder has weighed in on the team’s loss and suggested that Rangnick is fully responsible for it.

“It comes from leadership. It comes from a coach demanding that from his players and gets that from his players,” Scholes told BT Sport, viaThe Mirror. “I don’t want to keep having a go at Ralf Rangnick, he seems really nice and comes across well in interviews, he’s very honest. But, how he was chosen to be manager of this club for six months until the end of the season, I’ll never know. The coach is a massive part of it. This isn’t a terrible group of players. I think if you give this group of players a structure and way of playing, there’s some real talent in the squad.

“They’re not as talented as the teams above them (in the Premier League ), we know that. But, the very first thing this club needs to do, to get anywhere near winning the league again, is get a proper coach.”

Scholes has also suggested that there is not a difference between Atletico and United’s squads, but it’s in their managers: “Atletico are not a better team than Manchester United but they’ve got a better experienced coach,” Scholes said. “If he [Simeone] was coaching Man United they win that game.”

Rio Ferdinand says not even Kylian Mbappe or Erling Haaland would solve United’s problems

Ferdinand has also shared his thoughts about United’s embarrassing elimination but he claimed that the problems won’t be solved overnight by elite playersof the likes ofKylian Mbappe or Erling Haaland. Instead, the legendary defender believes the problem starts from the top.

“If you bring in Mbappe and Haaland this summer, Manchester United aren’t winning the league. It doesn’t matter who they bring in,” Ferdinand told BT Sport, via ESPN. Besides, he pointed out that it’s not easy for the club to bring a manager because of the pressure that coaching United implies.

“There’s so much work to be done. I understand what Man United means to us, the emblem, it means so much. But, if you’re looking to come here, it’s a great project to be a part of, but I think managers might look at others clubs because there’s less pressure, the spotlight isn’t on them as much,” he said, as quoted by The Mirror.

“I think behind the scenes the club will be doing their work in trying to find the next person for that hot seat. It’s not easy. The managers you probably want are all in jobs. But that’s part of football, you’ve got to find the right person,” Ferdinand continued. Additionally, he noted that while the Atletico squad would do anything Simeone asks them to do, the United side has much more doubts.

“The Atletico team had a group of reliable men that would go out there and do whatever the manager has asked them. They understood the job at hand and worked together as a team. Whereas, United are all looking at each other wondering ‘who’s going to pull a magic trick out of the hat? Who’s going to pull us out of danger? Ronaldo did it at the weekend but who’s next?’”

Whenever the likes of Ferdinand and Scholes have something to say about the club where they shone, you listen. Especially in times like these, when the team leaves so much to be desired. Both of them have fair points, Manchester United have continuously hitrock bottom since Sir Alex Ferguson left but it’s time for them to make significant changes and get back toglory days.

It was not the first time that Scholes has received a lap dance, in October, Scholes was seen at Manchester’s Dirty Martini bar getting a lap dance from a blonde woman. In this case another customer had seen Scholes sitting down enjoying his drink when a blonde woman came and started dancing in front of him and Scholes simply grabbed the woman by the waist.

The customer began to film the scene and later revealed the dirty details of the lap dance, ‘He was sitting down, and she started dancing in front of him.’ Here is what a source told The Sun about Paul Scholes’ raunchy lap dance.

Eyewitness comments about Paul Scholes’ lap dance

According to one witness, Paul Scholes ‘couldn’t help himself and ran his hands all over the place as she gyrated.’ The source told The Sun, ‘The girl wasn’t a professional lap dancer, she was drinking there and having fun… Fair play to him, he took it in good humor.’

This is the third strange incident to involve the former Manchester United legend, Scholes was the subject of joke on social media after his daughter, super model, Alicia Scholes uploaded an Instagram picture of Scholes chewing her toenails.

The video was seen by more than 650,000 people who follow Alicia Scholes. Alicia attributed the gross picture to “true love”, while followers were grossed out by the image.

With remarkable 20 League titles, 12 FA Cups, five League Cups, and a record 21 FA Group Shields, Manchester United has won more trophies than any other team in English soccer. In addition, they can boast of three UEFA Champions Leaguetrophies, one UEFA Europa League, one UEFA Winners’ Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one Intercontinental Cup, and one FIFA Club World Cup.

Manchester United has plied its trade withnumerousyoung players. For this club, the likes of Bobby Charlton, Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs, and Paul Scholes have giventheir best and won lots of collective and individual trophies and accolades.

20. Dimitar Berbatov– 56 goals

On September 1, 2008, Berbatov transferred to Manchester United, costing the club $40 million, after agreeing a four-year contract. An interesting fact is that Tottenham had already rejected a Manchester City offer, so things could have turned out different.

Berbatov scored a total of 56 goals in 149 games for the Old Trafford giant. He wore the No.9 jersey for United until 2012 when he moved to Fulham. The Bulgarian retired in September 2019.

19. Robin van Persie– 58 goals

On August 17, 2012, for an estimated fee of $30 million, Van Persie left Arsenal to switch alliances to Manchester United. He agreed a four-year deal maintaining him at the club until June 2016, picking the No.20 jersey.

Van Persie featured in 105 games for the Red Devils across all competitions, managing 58 total goals. The Dutchman left the Old Trafford for the Turkish side Fenerbahce in summer 2015. He has been retired since May 2019.

18. Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez– 59 goals

In October 2009, Manchester United becamefirst aware of Guadalajara’s striker Hernandez; that December, a scout went to Mexico and the impressions were positive. On April 8, 2010, Chicharito agreed to sign a contract with Manchester United for an undisclosed fee.

Chicharito was given the jersey No.14. With it, he netted a total of 59 goals in 157 games for the Red Devils in all competitions. After spending the 2014-15 season on loan at Real Madrid, he left United for good in summer 2015, when he moved to Bayer Leverkusen. He is currently featuring for LAGalaxy in the MLS.

17. Dwight Yorke– 65 goals

Aston Villa sold Dwight Yorke to Manchester United on August 20, 1998, for a reported fee of $16 million. Yorke was a vital player in his first season, leading his club to a treble of the Premier League title, FA Cup, and UEFA Champions League.

The ex-Trinidad and Tobago striker wore the No.19 jersey number. He scored 65 total goals in 152 matches for Manchester United in all competitions. His stay at the Old Trafford lasted four years, as he departed for Blackburn Rovers in summer 2004. Yorke retired in 2009.

16. Anthony Martial– 76 goals

Martial completed a move from Monaco to Manchester United on September 1, 2015. He signed a four-year deal worth $46 million. This was the highest transfer fee charged to a teenager, shattering Luke Shaw’s previous record of $35 million United paid a year earlier.

Having started with the No.9, but had to give it up upon the arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2016. Three years, the Frenchman reclaimed his old jersey number back. Martial has played 241games for Man Utd so far, scoring 76goals in total.

15. Marcus Rashford– 81 goals

Rashford is a well-known Manchester United academy product. He spent 10 years passing through their youth teams, from 2005 to 2015, and was included in the first team in early 2015. Rashford made his Red Devils debut in 2016.

Even though he is still 23 years old, Rashford has worn three jersey numbers for United so far: No. 39, No.19, and the most recent one, No.10. Up to this day, the English forward has featured in 240 games for Man Utd, marking 81 goals in total.

14. Eric Cantona– 81 goal

On November 26, 1992, Cantona left Leeds for Manchester United for a sum of $1.5 million. The announcement of the imminent transfer of Cantona to a fierce rival was greeted with bitterness by the Leeds fans.

The Frenchman went on to feature in 179 games in all competitions for United and scored 81 goals. They were his last club in his career, as he retired in 1997, after spending 5 years in Manchester full of different individual and club accolades.

13. David Beckham– 85 goals

David Beckham spent two years at the United youth academy, before breaking through to the first team in 1992. He made his first-team debut in September 1992 but signed a professional contract with the club on January 23, 1993.

The former midfielder stayed more than a decade in Manchester, as he left for Real Madrid in 2003. Beckham netted 85 goals in 387 total matches for Man U. He retired in 2013 after spending the season at Paris Saint-Germain. At the moment, the 45-year-old is the owner of Inter Miami.

12. David Herd– 88 goals

David Herd featured for Stockport County and Arsenal, before joining Manchester United in 1961. In 1965 and 1967, he helped the club win the English League Championship.

The Scotsman made 156 total appearances wearing the Red jersey, and he scored 88 goals across all competitions. Herd went on to play for Stoke City in 1968, before ending his career with Waterford in 1971. He died on October 1, 2016.

11. Mark Hughes– 92 goals

Hughes is another former United academy player, who was introduced into the first team in 1980. For three years, though, he did not make his first-team debut. After debuting in 1983, he went on to stay another three years, before leaving for Barcelona in 1986.

In 1988, the Welshman returned at the Old Trafford for a second spell, which lasted longer than the first one, until 1995. In total, he scored 92 goals for Manchester United in 256 games in his two spells at the Old Trafford.

10. Sir Bobby Charlton– 101 goals

Sir Bobby Charlton is also one of the most successful United’s academies products, spending three years in their youth ranks. He entered the first team in 1956 and made his debut later in October.

Robert Charlton made history with the club and continued to do so for 17 years, until 1973 when he joined Preston North End. He scored 101 goals for United on 354 occasions. The ex-attacking midfielder retired in 1980 with Blacktown City.

9. George Best–116 goals

Best spent two seasons in the Manchester United academy before being launched into the first team in 1963. In September 1963, he made his first-team debut, marking the beginning of what turned out to be an 11-year stay in Manchester.

He left a grand mark at United, having scored 116 times in 303 total appearances. The Northern Ireland international had a very colorful career after departing from the Red Devils in 1974, as he played for 16 different clubs in a decade, before hanging his boots in 1984. George Best died on November 25, 2005.

8. Cristiano Ronaldo– 118 goals

When he had left Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2003, Ronaldo became the first Portuguese player to ever play for Manchester United. His transfer fee of $6 million made him the all-time most expensive teenager in English soccer.

Wearing the famous No.7 jersey, he took on the world with United, marking 118 goals in 292 games in the Red jersey. He stayed for six years at the Old Trafford, leaving for Real Madrid in 2009. The 35-year-old forward is currently featuring for Juventus in Serie A.

7. Andy Cole– 121 goals

In a shock deal for Newcastle, Andrew Cole saw himself moving to Manchester United on January 10, 1995, for a price of $9 million, setting a new record for the most lucrative British move. Cole managed to score 12 goals in just 18 Premier League matches for United, even though he joined halfway through the 1994-95 season.

He spent six years wearing the Man Utd jersey, as he left in 2001 for Blackburn Rovers. While at Manchester, he netted 121 goals in a total of 274 games. In 2008, he opted to retire, playing last for Nottingham Forest.

6. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer– 127 goals

Solskjær joined Manchester United on July 29, 1996, in a shocking move, for he was almost unknown outside his home country. The Norwegian was expected to be an alternative to Eric Cantona and Andy Cole, but he imminently proved to be a vital asset to Sir Alex Ferguson’s squad.

Solskjaer spent 11 years at United, marking 127 goals in 365 games in all competitions. They were, in fact, his final club of the career, as he said ‘farewell’ to professional football in 2007. Ole is the current head coach at Manchester United, after being assigned in 2018.

5. Ruud van Nistelrooy– 150 goals

Interestingly, Ruud van Nistelrooy was supposed to become a Man Utd player in early 2000. However, his move from PSV Eindhoven was scuppered after he suffered a rupture to his anterior cruciate knee ligaments. One year later, he did make his dream move to the Old Trafford.

The Dutchman went on to become of the world’s most prolific striker, scoring 150 times in 219 matches for the Red Devils during his five-year spell. He switched to Real Madrid in 2006 and hung up his boots in 2012. He is now the PSV Eindhoven Under-19 coach and the assistant manager for the Netherlands.

4. Paul Scholes– 152 goals

Paul Scholes is one of the rare one-club players in the world who spent their entire careers playing for only one club. The former midfielder spent two seasons in United’s academy before being called into the senior squad in 1993. He debuted for the first team the next season.

Scholes hung up his boots in 2011, after spending 18 years at Man Utd. However, due to an injury crisis the following season, he opted to come back to help his team. During his two spells, the Englishman made 709 total appearances at Manchester, celebrating 152 goals. The 45-year-old is the current caretaker of Salford City.

3. Denis Law– 160 goals

One season after leaving Manchester City, Denis Law returned to the city in 1962, this time with Manchester United. A fun fact is that, with a total of 46 successful targets in one season, he holds the record of the most goals in a competitive season.

In 254 games across all competitions from 1962 to 1973, the former Scottland striker scored 160 goals overall. He then returned for another spell at City prior to retiring in 1974.

2. Ryan Giggs– 161 goals

Giggs played for both Manchester clubs’ academies, but the ones who gave him the first-team call-up were Manchester United. Just like Paul Scholes, he spent his entire professional career on the red side of the city.

The Welshman featured in unreachable 928 games for United, scoring a total of 161 goals down the road. He retired in 2014, after spending 24 years with the English giants. The 46-year-old is the current head coach of Wales.

1. Wayne Rooney– 235 goals

Everton were forced to sell Rooney in summer 2004, once the player sent a transfer request. Eventually, a $33 million deal was agreed with Manchester United, as it was the largest fee ever paid to a player under 20 years of age, and Rooney was just 18 at the time.

The then-youngster started with the No.8 jersey but later switched to No.10. In the period of 13 years, the forward made 559 appearances in all competitions for the Reds, and he netted on 253 occasions. At 35 years of age, Rooney is playing for Derby County currently.