Manchester United's Greatest 23-Man Squad Of The Premier League Era

Teams are frequently built around strikers, as ultimately, their job is to provide goals and goals are what win games and ensure success for a team. No striker can truly succeed without the support of a great defence and midfield, but what distinguishes one from another are occasional moments of individual brilliance.

United's strikeforce throughout the years has included everything from target-men to poachers, each capable of finding the back of the net in their own unique ways whenever called upon. Some only stayed or were only impactful for a couple of years, such as Carlos Tevez or Dwight Yorke, one of the many heroes of the Treble-winning 1998/99 season, whilst others stuck around and have cemented their place in Old Trafford history.

Eric Cantona was signed seemingly on a whim in 1992 when Leeds telephoned United chairman Martin Edwards to enquire about the availability of Denis Irwin. Their offer was rebuffed, but Edwards, in a meeting with Sir Alex Ferguson at the time of the call, was instructed to make a counter enquiry about the Frenchman instead.

Though remembered more by fans of other teams for his infamous 'kung-fu' kick on a Crystal Palace fan or the bizarre 'when the seagulls follow the trawler...' quote in the press conference that followed, 'the King' is instead held in high regard by the United faithful for his immense goalscoring prowess, which resulted in him hitting the next 64 times in five years before his shock retirement at the age of thirty.