When discussing the greatest goalkeepers in English football history, Peter Schmeichel's name is never far from the top.
Middlesbrough goalkeeper Victor Valdes has told the club’s official website that Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel is his all-time Premier League idol.
The Great Dane won five domestic titles during a legendary eight year spell at Old Trafford, while his stunning reflex save to deny Newcastle United’s Les Ferdinand in 1997 was voted the greatest save in the competitions first decade in the illustrious Premier League 10 Seasons awards (below).
Consequently, he appeared irreplaceable after departing for Sporting Lisbon in 1999 season, with Mark Bosnich, Fabien Barthez and Tim Howard all failing to fill the huge, Schmeichel-shaped void in United’s goal before Edwin Van Der Sar arrived to begin his own legacy.
And Valdes, who endured a comparatively miserable stint at Old Trafford under Louis Van Gaal, has named the 1992 European Champion as his all-time favourite.
“I was always watching Peter Schmeichel,” the former Barcelona shot-stopper told the club’s official website. “Because he was always making very spectacular and amazing saves.”
Valdes also insisted that the three main attributes needed to become a successful goalkeeper are character, power and calmness.
While Schmeichel possessed the first two by the bucketload, his deafened defenders may have something to say about the latter.
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