Peter Schmeichel has claimed that all Manchester United players, past or present, must all share one thing in common if they are to succeed at Old Trafford.
The 61-year-old Manchester United legend had a sensational impact at Old Trafford and is widely regarded as one of the best Premier League ‘keepers of all time.
Sir Alex Ferguson brought Peter Schmeichel to the Premier League club back in 1991 after the Red Devils snapped up the Dane from Danish side Brondby IF.
United paid a transfer fee of £505,000 to sign Schmeichel and the former Denmark international was a key player for ex-United manager Sir Alex Ferguson in the 1990s.
During his time at Old Trafford, Schmeichel lifted five Premier League titles, a Champions League trophy, three FA Cups and a League Cup with United.
The ex-Red Devils star’s remarkable spell at the club came to an end after United’s famous continental treble win under Ferguson in the 1998-99 campaign.
Peter Schmeichel spotlights the difference between playing for Man Utd and a Premier League club like Tottenham
Peter Schmeichel went on to have a brief spell at Sporting CP after he left Old Trafford in 1999 before he returned to England in 2001 with Aston Villa.
The Manchester United legend later played for Manchester City before he called it time on his illustrious playing career in 2003.
Speaking to the Radio Times, Schmeichel argued that an all-important aspect of playing for United depends on the player being “mentally strong” enough.
“You need to be mentally strong to play for a club like Man Utd,” he said.
“I’m trying to explain this to people all the time. What is it? Why is it so different to play for Man United not Tottenham? Because they are in similar situations.
“The thing is, when you play for Man United, your game has been reported on everywhere.
“There isn’t a single news outlet, newspaper, in the whole world that doesn’t carry at least a result and sometimes an article or a report on the game, and it stays.
“It goes on for days and days until the next game.”
Peter Schmeichel compares Man Utd to three other European heavyweight clubs amid his Tottenham claim
Schmeichel said there is a “big difference” for players to play at the likes of Liverpool, United, Real Madrid and Barcelona compared with other clubs.
“If you play for Tottenham, yeah, if something’s happened, the game might be reported the next day, but the day after that, you don’t talk about it anymore,” he continued.
“That’s a big difference, and there’s only a couple of clubs in the world where it’s like that, Liverpool, Man United, and, to a certain degree, Real Madrid and Barcelona.
“Then I’m struggling to find other clubs that live in that space.”
United are now back in action on Thursday in the first leg of the Europa League semi-finals, with Athletic Club hosting the Red Devils at the San Mames Stadium.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
