Former Man United CEO David Gill reveals the four best signings made in his time working with Sir Alex Ferguson... and he DOESN'T include Cristiano Ronaldo!
- David Gill spent 16 years at Man United, a decade of which was acting as the CEO
- Working in tandem with Sir Alex Ferguson, he picked out the four best signings
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David Gill raised a few eyebrows when he was asked to name the top three signings during his time as Manchester United CEO, particularly given he omitted Cristiano Ronaldo.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner was sold to Real Madrid as the most expensive player in history at the time, going for £80million, having become one of the best players in the world at Old Trafford.
But Gill, who first joined United in 1997 before occupying the CEO role from 2003 to 2013, decided to look past the Portuguese superstar when it came to the best bits of business during his time in charge.
There was no hesitation from Gill when picking his first player, choosing Wayne Rooney, who joined as a teenager and went on to become Manchester United's all-time leading goalscorer.
'Wayne, in terms of what he did for the club,' Gill told Rio Ferdinand's FIVE YouTube channel.
![David Gill (right) spent 10 years as Manchester United CEO and oversaw lots of big signings (pictured in August 2004 when Wayne Rooney put pen to paper to move to Old Trafford)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/16/80876045-13047705-image-a-13_1707151583652.jpg)
David Gill (right) spent 10 years as Manchester United CEO and oversaw lots of big signings (pictured in August 2004 when Wayne Rooney put pen to paper to move to Old Trafford)
![Gill chose not to include Cristiano Ronaldo (left) when asked to big his top three signings](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/16/80875629-13047705-image-a-12_1707151485674.jpg)
Gill chose not to include Cristiano Ronaldo (left) when asked to big his top three signings
![Former United CEO Gill appeared on Ferdinand's podcast](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/16/80874159-13047705-Former_United_CEO_Gill_appeared_on_Ferdinand_s_podcast-a-14_1707151594935.jpg)
![The former United defender spoke about the best signings Gill made while acting as CEO](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/16/80874163-13047705-The_former_United_defender_spoke_about_incoming_CEO_Berrada-a-15_1707151594940.jpg)
David Gill (left) explained to Rio Ferdinand (right) the best signings he made while he was CEO
Rooney finished his time at United with 253 goals in 559 appearances across his 13-year spell at Old Trafford.
From there, Gill was spoilt for choice but decided to pick one of Rooney's team-mates for club and country - Michael Carrick.
The unassuming central midfielder became a vital cog in Sir Alex Ferguson's title-winning teams, finishing his career with five Premier League titles, three League Cups, an FA Cup and a UEFA Champions League.
From there Gill was stuck between two players, eventually electing for them both in a tied pick.
![Carrick became a vital piece of the puzzle en route to winning five Premier League titles](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/16/80876037-13047705-image-m-19_1707151606446.jpg)
![Evra and Vidic were both included by Gill - despite only having three picks](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/16/80876039-13047705-image-a-20_1707151614544.jpg)
Michael Carrick (left), Patrice Evra (right, far left) and Nemanja Vidic (right) were all picked out
Given Ferdinand joined in 2002 from Leeds United, he wasn't on the board to be picked, but Gill instead selected two of Ferdinand's defensive unit in Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra.
'I thought those two would have been first,' Ferdinand said.
While he wasn't picked in the top four, Gill went on to add that for pure significance, few signings proved to be bigger than when United landed Edwin van der Sar.
'We struggled to replace Peter (Schmeichel) and we went and got Edwin and he was great for us for years.'
All of Gill's picks have been titans for Manchester United in the glory days of Ferguson, all at one time or another wearing the captain's armband.
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