Staff : First team : Mikael Silvestre

Mikael Silvestre is one of the most experienced members of Sir Alex Ferguson’s squad, averaging almost 50 appearances per season in his seven years at Old Trafford.

This impressive record owes much to Mikael’s ability to play in two different positions, centre-back and left-back.

As such, he’s survived the threat posed by new acquisitions and been invaluable to the manager when others have been suspended or injured – in the latter stages of 2005/06, he was the one patrolling Gabriel Heinze’s patch on the left flank while new-boy Nemanja Vidic partnered central lynchpin Rio Ferdinand.

The return to left-back, where he’d once been resident, enabled Silvestre to show off some of his attacking skills – a pinpoint cross for Wayne Rooney’s goal against Arsenal in April 2006 being the prime example.

He later described that 2-0 win for United as “the best match of my career. I was up against Alexandr Hleb and Emmanuel Adebayor, but I achieved the objectives I set myself. I had a huge amount of determination. It was a benchmark game for me.”

Silvestre believes that performance led to his inclusion in the French World Cup squad after an almost 18-month spell in the international wilderness. His durability may also have been a factor - only Ferdinand and Rooney started more than his 44 games for United during 2005/06.


Position: Defender
Appearances: 355
Goals: 10
Joined United: 02 Sep 1999
Transfer Fee: £4million
Previous Clubs: Internazionale
United Debut: 11 Sep 1999 v Liverpool (A)
International France