Greatest Premier League XI
DISCLAIMER: The views given here are soley that of the author and do not reflect those of the website.
Since its creation in 1992, the Premier League has gone from strength to strength. It has become one of the most exciting and competitive league in the world.
The Premier League broadcasts its matches in 212 territories to 643 million homes and has an estimated TV audience of 4.7 billion people. Many of the greatest and most skillful players of all time have shown Premiership fans the true meaning of the beautiful game. Since its inception, there have been five clubs have won the title. However, one team has dominated more than any other and that club is Manchester United, winning 13 of the 22 leagues titles. It is only fair then that the majority of the greatest eleven are Manchester United players.
I have settled for a 4-3-3 formation with seven substitutes. With so many great players comes the difficult task of choosing the best of the best. I have tried my best to pick the most balanced side from the selection. So, let’s begin then.
Goalkeeper
Peter Schmeichel (Manchester United, Aston Villa & Manchester City, Denmark)
This was probably the easiest selection in the team. I don’t know any goalkeeper in history of the Premier League that has had the same influence that Schmeichel had in his days at especially Old Trafford. In 1991, after watching his talent on the international scene, Alex Ferguson decided to bring Schmeichel to England for £505,000. Ferguson later remarked in 2000 that the signing of Schmeichel was the "bargain of the century” and few could argue with that.
Every great team needs a world class goalkeeper. Arsenal had Seaman, Chelsea had Cech and United had Schmeichel. He was voted in both 1992 and 1993 as the world’s best goalkeeper by IFFHS. In his first season at Manchester United he kept 22 clean sheets and this continued for the rest of his United career with Schmeichel keeping a clean sheet in 42% of his games. At the end of his United career he had won 5 league titles, 3 FA Cups and 1 Champions League, not to mention playing a huge part in the historic treble winning season of 1999.
Manchester United fans will never forget his penalty save against Denis Bergkamp in the 1999 FA Cup semi-final which kept the treble dream alive. He was simply a world class goalkeeper. His reflexes were legendary and his acrobatic saves over the years were a joy to behold.
Appearances: 350, Goals: 1