Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel has been talking about the one manager who made Sir Alex Ferguson a little uneasy.
Schmeichel had some great years with Sir Alex, playing 395 times for Man United and winning five league titles.
Along with many other accolades, the duo won a Champions League title in the 1998–1999 campaign.
In a recent interview with the “Planet Premier League” podcast, Schmeichel also related tales of Ferguson’s ability to wind up managers whilst at United.
According to the goalkeeper, Ferguson used astute tactics and carefully selected his opportunities. Schmeichel also acknowledged that there was one manager who turned out to be a bit of an outlier, citing one instance in which his manager ultimately prevailed over Kevin Keegan.
When Arsene Wenger initially came to England, Ferguson was quite cautious, according to Schmeichel, concerned about how his new ways would impact United.
When the pundit was first questioned, it was about whether Ferguson would behave differently before a match against Wenger.
He replied: “Not so much running up to it, and not so much around those games, it was more, he was deliberately winding other managers up but it always came around other games, so if they played someone else and said something he would, you know.
“Of course Wenger and Ferguson is one of the classics, but just to sort of illustrate how he was playing it was Kevin Keegan eventually snapped when they lost 4-3 to Liverpool.
“That was kind of how he played it, I don’t mean to insult anybody but it was great entertainment for us players, to see our manager playing around with the other managers.
“But I think with Wenger it was more, I think he was a little bit not scared but this guy came in with a different background, wanted to play football in a different way, and he was a little bit scared of how that would impact his way of playing and if it would be better.
“I think the two of them are very much responsible for the level of what we have in the Premier League now.”
Both Ferguson and Wenger elevated the level of English football with their coaching and management skills. Their teams were the best teams in Europe and competed for all the big titles.
The duo revolutionised football in England and other managers found it hard to match their level. There was an intense rivalry between the two but also mutual respect for each other.
Wenger’s team managed to achieve great things during his time with the London club and he earned the respect of all his rivals, including the great Ferguson.
