Serbian defender (or murderer if you believed the popular terrace chant) Nemanja Vidic was signed as a complete unknown from Spartak Moscow a in January of 2006, and went on to become club captain and a firm fan favourite for his no-nonsense take on the position of centre back.
Alongside Rio Ferdinand he set the bedrock for a Champions League win in 2008 with some commanding performances at the back, and on the day that his retirement was announced we've seen just how highly he was thought of by Manchester United fans.
Vidic was not happy under David Moyes and announced his decision to leave the club for Inter Milan before the end of the 2013/14 season, and we never saw the same player again due to injuries and not seeing eye to eye with the coaches at Inter Milan. As he left, he provided a lovely moment for the fans with his goodbye speech which was typically straight to the point, and it makes for emotional viewing for United fans looking back.
What a chant that was by the way.
I myself adored Vidic as a teenager, and earlier today explained why he sits alongside Denis Irwin and Eric Cantona in my personal top three United players ever on our daily podcast The Racket (Vidic discussion from round 4:30):
He was a beast of a man, a warrior, a leader. The fans sang his chant with 100% belief, and by interrupting his speech with it they gave the man the perfect way to bow out.
His nagging wife finally got that move to a world fashion capital by the way, hope she enjoyed it.
