I won Treble with Man United – but Sir Alex Ferguson almost sacked me before I apologised

Peter Schmeichel has recalled a dramatic incident at Manchester United, admitting that he almost got sacked by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Schmeichel is one of Old Trafford's most decorated goalkeepers, helping United clinch five Premier League titles, one Champions League and several other domestic honours within an eight-year spell. He also played a pivotal role in the historic treble-winning season of 1998/99, winning the FA Cup, league title and Champions League.

Known for his commanding presence and critical saves, the Danish shot-stopper formed one of the club's most influential defences alongside names such as Gary Neville, Steve Bruce and Jaap Stam.

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However, when speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Schmeichel revealed how his temper once almost led to his sacking. The now-60-year-old said: "Sir Alex Ferguson picked on me after a game and the second half was so bad, but I made a lot of saves and I felt like I kept the team in.

"He blamed me for my goal kicks. I felt really heart done by for him picking on me. My head went and that was probably my biggest regret in football and I'm not repeating that. On a Monday morning, he called me into his office and said that he was going to sack me and that we can't have a player doing this. I accepted that and I apologised to him.

"He had a meeting in the changing room after and it was the worst I've ever seen him. He was so angry. He never done that in training before. He left and then I apologised to the team. My behaviour was so out of order. There are certain things you can do and certain things you can't do.

"In the 90 minutes, I feel like you can say whatever because it's all about winning. Before the game and after the game, you can't say anything. It's up to the manager or the coach to talk about what happened. You can't go in and say you played bad, but I did that. I shouldn't have done that. But he never brought it up again."

Schmeichel also revealed that Ferguson enjoyed when players give him a bit of stick back in the changing rooms during games, adding that he liked to shake up tactics by picking on different players. He said: "What I learned very quickly was that Sir Alex Ferguson needed an out.

"Very often it was in games where things were going well, or he needed something off his chest. He had certain players that he would do that to. I was one of them, Gary Pallister was one of them and Roy Keane was one of them. Ryan [Giggs] was also one of them. It would have been brutal to watch but you were allowed to talk back as a player. He wanted that confrontation because it was shaking things up. He wanted that.

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"What I learned from him was that 95% of everything he said was by the sign and he was thinking about it and was waiting for the opportunity to say that. He would pick those moments and once it happened, gone."

Following his departure from United in the summer of 1999, Schmeichel had stints with Sporting in Lisbon and Aston Villa, before making a Manchester comeback to play for United's rivals. His time with Manchester City lasted just the 2002/03 season before he hung up his gloves.

These days, the ex-goalkeeper joins podcasts and television programmes as a pundit, sharing insight on European football matches - some of which involve his son, Kasper, now at Celtic.

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