Manchester United's giant Dane — the finest goalkeeper in English football history and architect of the 1999 Treble.
Peter Bolesław Schmeichel was born in Gladsaxe, Denmark in 1963 and began at amateur clubs before Brøndby (1987–1991) where he won 3 Danish titles. Manchester United paid £530,000 in 1991 — one of football's greatest transfer bargains — and he spent 8 seasons making 398 appearances, winning 5 Premier League titles, 3 FA Cups and the 1999 Champions League as captain, lifting the trophy on his final United appearance. He earned 129 Denmark caps keeping 66 clean sheets and captaining them at the 1992 European Championship — which Denmark won remarkably having entered as late replacements. He kept 342 career clean sheets in 752 appearances. Brief spells at Sporting CP (1999–2001), Aston Villa (2001–02) and Manchester City (2002–03) closed his career. He was named Danish Player of the Year 6 times. He was chosen as the best goalkeeper in Premier League history in a 2019 fan vote. His shot-stopping, commanding of his area and distribution were all considered elite. His son Kasper Schmeichel also became a professional goalkeeper, winning the Premier League with Leicester City.
Champions League 1999 (Manchester United)
Career Honours
- Champions League 1999 (Manchester United)
- Premier League 5x
- FA Cup 3x
- League Cup 1992
- Danish Championship 3x (Brøndby)
- Danish Football Player of Year 6x