For the younger elements of Manchester United’s mammoth worldwide fanbase, the intervening years since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure have felt like the dark days, but club legend Peter Schmeichel is adamant sunnier climes are on their way back to Old Trafford.
If the Great Dane was a Game of Thrones character he would have played the part of The Wall separating the Seven Kingdoms from the approaching winter and the White Walkers, such was his importance to the United defence during his Red Devils career.
And Schmeichel believes that, after a harsh few years roaming the wilderness, Jose Mourinho is the man to sit United back on their throne.
One of the beautiful game’s greatest ever managers delivered so much success during his 26 years in charge that United fans felt entitled to be winning silverware each season, but they have been served with a reality check since the iconic Scot called time on his reign in 2013.
David Moyes looked hopelessly lost treading in Sir Alex’s footsteps while even another modern great in Louis van Gaal could not stir the United beast from its slumber, criticised for his dour football despite signing off with a record-equaling 12th FA Cup.
Mourinho made waves instantly with the acquisitions of three of the world’s best players in Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan last summer. And, after a ponderous start, United and Mourinho are finally starting to click. They have won 13 of their last 20 games in all competitions and even the sole defeat in that run, last Thursday’s 2-1 League Cup semi-final second leg loss to Hull, carried little significance as they still progressed to the final – Mourinho’s first.
“I fully expect that success is on its way back to the club,” Schmeichel told Sport360 at the Abu Dhabi Invitational at Yas Links Golf Club on Saturday. “I am full of optimism. I don’t think we’ve got any chance of winning the league this season, we’re too far behind, but I fully expect us to finish comfortably in the top four and we’re going to have a run in the Champions League next year.
“We are the richest club in the world, we’re the most popular club in the world, we have players coming back to choose Man United over any other, like Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan.”
Schmeichel scoffed at the very suggestion the Moyes and Van Gaal eras could even be labelled dark days, suggesting that phrase should be kept for true tragedies in the club’s history like the 1958 Munich air disaster and the last time United were relegated from England’s top flight in the 1973/74 campaign.
The 53-year-old added: “What are the dark years? We didn’t get relegated, we didn’t have to deal with anything like Munich. We just had a couple of bad years. It’s predictable. A manager leaves, it’s always going to be hard. When Sir Matt (Busby) left, Wilf McGuiness (and then Frank O’Farrell) lasted about a year, so it’s just history repeating itself. When you look at history, you know we’re going to come back. We’re too big a club not to.”
Schmeichel, who signed off after eight years at Old Trafford as a treble-winner following 1999’s historic Champions League, FA Cup and Premier League haul, lifted 15 trophies as one of the game’s greatest ever custodians, and he is happy to see his beloved Reds approaching something akin to both previous form and fame.
“I think they are getting back on track,” said Schmeichel, Denmark’s most capped international with 129 appearances from 1987-2001.
“It’s been three years of very poor results, finishing seventh, fifth and fourth. The choice of manager was an obvious, good choice. An experienced Premier League manager, an experienced winner. When he was offered the United job, he considered it the biggest job in the world and he’s been at Real Madrid, but he’s approached it in a humble, realistic way.”
Sir Alex’s success was based on many elements. An unshakable self-belief, a root and branch overhaul of the club’s youth system when he first arrived in 1986 and his chameleon-like ability to adapt to new generations and the changing facade of football.
And Schmeichel believes ex-Chelsea boss Mourinho has already adapted himself during his first six months at the Old Trafford helm.
“The most important thing for me was when we had the spell of six games when we were 1-0 up and got pegged back, I think he realised we always have to go for the second goal,” Schmeichel said of a difficult period in September and October when United lost four and drew two of their 10 games.
“And when you go for the second you also go for the third and fourth, so he’s changing his mentality. Everywhere he’s been he’s always protecting a lead. We don’t do that at United, we go for the second and the third and the reason we do that is because we’re good enough to do that. That has happened in the last month or so and it’s been interesting to see players reacting positively to that.
“He knew he had to put a lot of points on the board but we also wanted to see good performances, goals scored and playing the Manchester United way. Everything has worked out perfectly. I don’t think he was ready to come in after (Sir Alex), but it’s going the right way now.”
Schmeichel is in awe of United’s new all-time top goalscorer Wayne Rooney, who overtook Sir Bobby Charlton’s 44-year-old mark of 249 strikes with a spectacular free-kick to bring up 250 at Stoke 12 days ago. And, despite being linked with a move to the Chinese Super League this week, Schmeichel believes Rooney, also England’s record scorer, still has a role at a club he has been with for 13 years.
“It’s unbelievable and you have to see it in the light,” the former stopper said of Rooney’s feat. “Take nothing away from Sir Bobby. To score 249 is incredible but Wayne has scored 250 goals in modern day football where, tactically, defenders are better, more physical and better than they’ve been at any time. To score that amount is just beggars belief.
“He’s been a fantastic servant for United and still is. There’s still room for Wayne Rooney in that team. He’s one of those guys, that player who will get the opportunity and show everybody that ‘I’m still here’ and make selection very difficult for Jose Mourinho.”
