I'd hate people to forget how good the Munich team were, but Sir Alex's thrilling team is the best tribute, says Sir Bobby Charlton

A survivor of the plane crash that took the lives of eight team-mates in 1958, a European Cup winner 10 years later and part of the delegation who made initial contact with Sir Alex Ferguson 21 years ago, Charlton has been at the core of events that have shaped the club he continues to represent as a director and ambassador.

On Wednesday, he will take his place at an emotional Old Trafford ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary of what people in his beloved Manchester refer to simply as 'Munich'.

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It will be a difficult day for one of Sir Matt Busby's favourite sons but Charlton firmly believes that the current United first team are an enduring tribute to his late manager and his fallen colleagues.

Charlton said: "They would be very proud of the way this team play, really, they would. Their coach was Jimmy Murphy, the manager was Matt Busby and their philosophy was always adventurous football.

"Matt always said to me: 'All those lads you see in the morning going into work at Trafford Park, they come to watch you on a Saturday. They have a boring job so you have to give them something a little bit special, something they will enjoy'.

"He was always saying: 'Don't be afraid to express yourselves' and that's how it is now with the wonderful and exciting players we have. They know how to express themselves and it's wonderful. And fitting."

At 70, Charlton remains immediately recognisable as the man who scored twice when United beat Benfica at Wembley to win the European Cup on behalf of those who had died 10 years before.

But to Charlton, Munich remains an open wound and he worries that as time passes and memories fade, so will the legacy of those who died.

He was only 20 at the time of the disaster and new to the team who were ripped apart on the afternoon of February 6, 1958.

Charlton clearly remains in awe of his late friends.

"You look at old films of the players and you think everything is slow and ponderous," he smiled.

"But, I tell you, in those days you had to earn your wage. The pitches were unbelievably bad, the ball was heavy, the weather was bad.

"What happened was a tragedy. It's really, really upsetting, even today. But it's better for me to tell people how good they were. I would hate to think people would forget it.

"People don't believe me sometimes when I tell them how good Duncan Edwards was. Tommy Taylor. David Pegg. Eddie Colman. Billy Whelan. They all had unbelievable ability.

"Look at Duncan. He was just a massive, massive talent. That's the only way I can describe him. There's a picture on the wall of the old youth team room and he looks twice the size of anybody else.

"In stature he was enormous. He was strong, he was tough, he could use his right foot, his left foot. He was a great long passer, a great short passer, he had great stamina and he could play in any position he wanted. And he was only 21. Incredible."

They say modern footballers do not care but United's first-team squad certainly listened earlier this month when Charlton addressed them after showing them a DVD of Munich. By all accounts, it was a remarkable occasion.

Dragged from the wreckage of the stricken plane by United goalkeeper Harry Gregg, Charlton suffered cuts to his head in the crash and spent a week in the same Munich hospital where the likes of Edwards lost their own struggles for life.

"I was young and concussed after the accident and I didn't find out until the following morning who had actually been killed," recalled Charlton, who has often spoken of the guilt he still feels.

"It was like someone reading out the names of pals you go to the dance with at the weekend.

"Friends who would invite you to go to their house for dinner at Christmas because you were living in digs. Everyone was so happy, and there was so much laughter on the plane because we had qualified in Belgrade.

"There was a first attempt to take off but they said we had a technical problem and would have to go back. We did that for a second time and, again, the message came through that we couldn't take off.

"And then, the third time they called us, the plane just went straight along the runway.

"When you fly you have a general idea how long it takes to take off and I was sitting there thinking there's something not quite right here.

"We went through a perimeter fence and then I don't remember anything until afterwards."

Travelling around the world with United and seeing Charlton in his customary seat on the plane, you wonder how on earth he manages to do it.

On this issue, he is pragmatic.

"First of all, you can't not fly any more. I'm not saying I can ever enjoy flying, but it doesn't worry me as much as it used to. Flying now is a lot less dangerous than it used to be.

"The accident happened simply because they didn't realise the speed of the aircraft, how much slush was on the runway, how much snow was coming down.

"These days, they wouldn't have taken off. I think about it quite often, about captain James Thain and what his thoughts were, and why we took off. But I suppose it will never be proved."