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Peter Schmeichel played almost 900 games for club and country during a glorious career – but he has no doubt which was the finest match he participated in.
Schmeichel was a key man for Denmark as they won the Euros in 1992, having been a shock late entry to the tournament after Yugoslavia’s exclusion.
The goalkeeper also played a vital part as Manchester United won the Premier League in 1993, their first league title in 26 years, before going on to help the club top the table on four more occasions.
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The last of those titles came in 1998/99, his final season at Old Trafford, when Manchester United remarkably won the Treble – Schmeichel lifted the Champions League trophy as captain in his last game for the club, against Bayern Munich at the Camp Nou.
That Champions League Final was dramatic enough, as Sir Alex Ferguson’s side scored twice late on to claim glory, but it’s the FA Cup semi-final replay against Arsenal a month earlier that Schmeichel chooses as the best game he ever played in.
Manchester United drew 0-0 with their Premier League title rivals in the first game on the Sunday, before they headed back to Villa Park for the replay three days later.
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“It was the best game I ever took part in – just the most crazy match, everything happened. You don’t think about all of that when you’re in it, it’s only when you come away from that season, you look back at how it unfolded and think, ‘What?!’” Schmeichel exclusively tells FourFourTwo.
David Beckham put Manchester United ahead in the replay, but Dennis Bergkamp equalised. Roy Keane was then sent off, before Arsenal won a penalty in injury time.
Then, Schmeichel made one of his most famous contributions as a Red Devils player, saving Bergkamp’s penalty, before Ryan Giggs’ incredible solo goal won it in extra-time. Manchester United went on to win the FA Cup, part of their historic Treble.
“I didn’t even know where we were in the game when I saved the penalty – I thought that if he scored, there was time to get an equaliser,” Schmeichel admitted. “I was quite surprised when the whistle went very soon after.
“Then Ryan Giggs’ goal… We didn’t have time to ponder, we had to zone in on the next league game, then Juventus in the Champions League semi-final.
“That was what that Treble-winning season was all about – we had to win every game, because in England, Arsenal were winning each game, too.”
Schmeichel was speaking in association with Frank’s RedHot Sauce
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