Edwin van der Sar has now told Wayne Rooney about the importance of five standout former Manchester United teammates during his time under Sir Alex Ferguson.
The 55-year-old Dutchman linked up with former Red Devils teammate Wayne Rooney for a podcast and recalled his experience from his time at Old Trafford.
Edwin van der Sar saw out the tail end of his professional playing career under Sir Alex Ferguson after the Red Devils signed him from Fulham in 2005.
The Manchester United legend, who had successful playing spells at both Ajax and Juventus, reportedly cost the Red Devils a £2m transfer fee at the time of his arrival.
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Edwin van der Sar spent six seasons at Manchester United and the former Netherlands international made 266 appearances for the Premier League club.
The former Man Utd No 1 allowed Sir Alex Ferguson to fill the void left behind by Peter Schmeichel after he established himself as a firm presence between the sticks.
Van der Sar, who is widely regarded as one of United’s best ‘keepers of all time, lifted four Premier League titles and a Champions League trophy under Ferguson.
The Man Utd legend singled out the importance of having a backline that featured the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra protecting him.
“I came at the later stage of my career,” Van der Sar told The Wayne Rooney Show, as per BBC Sport.
“I was 34 and I was able to play there for six years. When I came in, what the manager asked you to have [was] authority.
“When building up from behind, making sure that there’s authority in the back four.
“I think Rio [Ferdinand] was still developing towards a world-class defender. We still had some other players before. [Nemanja] Vidic came in, Patrice [Evra] came a little bit later.”
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As former United manager Ferguson benefited from his defence and shot-stopper, Van der Sar highlighted other major areas of the starting XI that stood out for him.
Van der Sar turned his attention to the United frontline, specifically for the massive role that both Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo would play at Old Trafford.
“I think the way Ferguson built up the puzzle towards a Champions League winning team, a Premier League winning team again – they added three or four pieces and that’s gelled together,” he added.
“I think the quality combined with the youth and the energy that the younger players gave, looking at Wayne and [Cristiano] Ronaldo, made it an incredible period in my life to play for a club like that.”
Van der Sar bowed out of football in 2011 after he lifted the Premier League title at the end of the 2010-11 campaign with the Red Devils.
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