Nemanja Vidic has revealed that he has kept in close contact with one Manchester United cult hero outside of his relationship with Rio Ferdinand.
Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic struck up what is considered by many Manchester United fans as one of the best centre-back partnerships in Premier League history.
Vidic arrived at Old Trafford from Spartak Moscow for a reported £7m transfer fee in 2006, while Ferdinand was landed in a £30m deal from Leeds United in 2002.
Ferdinand and Vidic’s defensive partnership was at the heart of Sir Alex Ferguson’s legendary United teams during the 2000s and early 2010s before his retirement.
Is Rio Ferdinand Man Utd’s best defender of all time? 🐐🤔
Nemanja Vidic’s important relationships with Rio Ferdinand and Dimitar Berbatov post-Man Utd spell
Nemanja Vidic, who is regarded as one of the best defenders of all time, captained Manchester United during his time under Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford.
The 44-year-old former Man Utd skipper lifted five Premier League titles, a Champions League trophy and three League Cups with the Red Devils.
Speaking to FourFourTwo magazine, Vidic admitted that he has kept in contact with former Man Utd and England defender Rio Ferdinand since their playing days.
“And Rio [Ferdinand], always, you know,” he said.
“Even if you don’t see each other for a long time, when you see each other, it’s great to catch up with each other, to talk about the game, to enjoy football.
“We didn’t have time to enjoy it when we were football players because we were travelling, preparing for games, under a lot of tension and pressure to perform well.”
Outside of United legend Ferdinand, Vidic explained that Red Devils cult hero Dimitar Berbatov is another former club teammate with whom he shares a close relationship.
“Berba, too, I’m close with – so yeah, there are quite a few players,” he added.
“I’m in touch with some Serbian guys, too.”
Settling the debate over Nemanja Vidic and Virgil van Dijk
Is Nemanja Vidic the best defender in Premier League history?
Nemanja Vidic speaks about his dynamic with former Inter Milan teammate Samir Handanovic
Vidic played on at the Red Devils in the season after Ferguson stepped down as Man Utd manager in 2013 before he left Old Trafford and moved to Inter Milan in 2014.
The former Serbia and Man Utd defender was a free agent when he completed his transfer to Inter Milan and Vidic struck up a close dynamic with Samir Handanovic.
“Obviously, from Inter, where I played, Samir Handanovic, the goalkeeper, we are still good friends and actually our families get on well together as well,” he said.
Vidic briefly played for Italian side Inter before the Man Utd legend announced his retirement from football in 2016.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
