Biography. Edwin Van der Sar is the all-time best goalkeeper Where is van der Sar now

Although his debut in the national team was, to put it mildly, not very successful. After a string of superb Champions League performances for Ajax, then-Orange manager Guus Hiddink brought Van der Sar into the squad in June 1995. qualifying match European Championship with Belarus. However, there was a huge confusion. The Dutch lost in Minsk, and Sergei Gerasimets scored the only goal after Van der Sar's mistake. Five years later, all this - the loss of the Dutch to the Belarusians and Van der Sar's mistake - seems even more unrealistic.
Unlike most Ajax players in the mid-90s, Van der Cap is not a student of the famous football school club. He started playing in the amateur team "Noordwijk", and got to Amsterdam in 1989 thanks to the friendship of the coach of "Noordwijk" Ruud Bring with Louis van Gaal. Four years after Stanley Menzo's several blunders in the UEFA Cup quarter-final against Auxerre, Van der Sar had a chance to win a place in the starting line-up, which he used brilliantly. Largely thanks to Van der Sar, Ajax won the Champions League, the Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup in the mid-90s, and also had no equal in the Dutch championship for three years in a row. However, after the decisions of the European Court in the Bosman case, the great team fell apart. Van der Cap, by the way, stayed in Amsterdam the longest. It wasn't until a year ago that he finally decided to change the scene.
Many leading European clubs claimed the Dutch goalkeeper, including Manchester United, who were looking for a replacement for Peter Schmeichel. Van der Cap chose Juventus. "I decided to go to Italy because I really enjoy learning about other cultures and there isn't much difference between Holland and England. But that doesn't mean I don't like the Premier League. Maybe I'll have time to play in England...More important everything for me was to be in a great club... Juventus is without a doubt one of the greatest clubs in Europe."
In Turin, Van der Cap got used to it very quickly. Juventus have conceded just 20 goals in 34 league games, far fewer than any other team, and it's not the goalkeeper's fault that the Turints missed the Scudetto. Nevertheless, Van der Cap admits that the first season in Italy was not as easy for him as it might seem at first glance. "Goalkeeping tasks in Italy and Holland differ significantly. In Holland, entertainment is as important as the result, and therefore creative functions are assigned to everyone, including goalkeepers. In Italy, the result is the only criterion, and for goalkeepers the most important thing is reliability"...

general information

Nickname: Van der Seive
Was born: October 29, 1970 (aged 37) Voorhout, The Netherlands
Citizenship:Netherlands
Height: 197 cm
Weight: 83 kg
Position: Goalkeeper

Club information

Club: Manchester United
Number: 1

Career

Club career
1990-1999 Ajax Amsterdam 226 (1)
1999-2001 Juventus 66 (0)
2001-2005 Fulham 127 (0)
2005- Manchester United 105 (0)

National team
1995- Netherlands 128 (0)

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Van der Sar returned to the national team

Renowned goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar, who retired from the Dutch national team after EURO 2008, is returning to the national team, according to uefa.com. However, the goalkeeper immediately warned that he took this step only because in the next matches with Iceland and Norway, the Dutch simply had no one to stand.

Van der Sar played his last, 128th, match on the international arena in the quarter-finals of EURO 2008 against the Russian team (1:3). Before home matches with the Icelanders and Norwegians, the main goalkeeper of the Dutch, Maarten Stekelenburg, was injured, and another goalkeeper of the national team, Henk Timmer, has not yet recovered from a groin injury. So the Manchester United goalkeeper had to come to the rescue, because for Michel Worm this is generally the first call-up to the national team.

“I was surprised by the challenge. I didn’t expect to be able to return, but at the same time I didn’t want to leave the national team. However, this does not mean that in next time I will accept the invitation again. Bert van Marwijk said that this was just a matter of one case. I will play only two matches, and after the duel with the Norwegians I will definitely leave," said van der Sar.

• Netherlands: Edwin van der Sar
• Van der Sar remains in the national team (03.10.2008)
• Van der Sar will play against Iceland and Norway (03.10.2008)
• Edwin van der Sar to decide whether to continue his career in December (14.07.2008)
• Edwin van der Sar: "We can win the Premier League and the Champions League again" (06.0...
• Van der Sar could only repeat Thuram's record (23.06.2008)
• Edwin van der Sar agreed to help his national team (08.10.2008)
• Van der Sar: "After the fight with the Norwegians, I will definitely leave" (8.10.2008)
• EDWIN VAN DER SAR
• Matches involving Edwin Van der Sar in the 2008/09 season
• Edwin Van der Sar (Manchester United)
• Edwin van der Sar: Manchester United deserve it" (22.05.2008)
• Netherlands: No. 1. Edwin van der Sar
• England
• "Grandfather" Edwin. Edwin Van Der Sar, who appeared in the Dutch national team under Gus Hyde...

Van der Sar: I didn't expect to come back

Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar has said he does not intend to return to the national team on a permanent basis.

"It was difficult to refuse. I was a part of this team for a long time and always felt a sense of responsibility. I thought not only of personal interest, but always cared about the goals of the team. To be honest, I was surprised. I did not expect to have to return. However, this is not means that I intend to repeat this. Bert said that this is just one time. Two matches, and that's it. After the game with Norway, I will finish my performance in the national team, "said van der Sar.

Edwin van der Sar: "The match with Norway will be the last in the national team"

Manchester United and Holland goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, who qualifying matches The 2010 World Cup against Iceland and Norway will replace the injured Marten Stekelenburg, said he did not intend to return to the national team on a permanent basis.

“It was hard to refuse. I have been part of this team for a long time and have always felt a sense of responsibility. I thought not only about personal interest, but always cared about the goals of the team.

To be honest, I was surprised. Didn't expect to be back. However, this does not mean that I intend to repeat this. Bert said it was just one time. Two matches and that's it. After the game with Norway, I will finish my performance in the national team ", - quotes van der Sar official website of UEFA.

Edwin van der Sar: "Russia has excellent chances in the semi-finals"

Holland goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, after the defeat in the match with Russia in the quarterfinals of Euro 2008 (1:3), told Sports.ru correspondent in Switzerland about the reasons for the team's unsuccessful game.

“We were not able to demonstrate the same level of play as in the group stage. The Euro is such a short-lived tournament where you can score nine points in a group and then be knocked out in the quarter-finals.

Russia has excellent chances in the semi-final, no matter who will be its opponent. You have a very fast, technical team that shows beautiful combinational football. There are some great players, but their names are very complicated, I can’t pronounce, ”said the Manchester United goalkeeper.

Van der Sar: It was hard to say no

Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar has commented on his return to the Dutch national team.

"It was hard to say no," says the goalkeeper. "For a long time I was part of this team, I have a responsibility to my partners and fans. I don't think only about myself, I'm interested in the fate of the team."

"Actually, I was surprised. I did not expect an invitation after I announced my retirement. But this does not mean that next time I will agree. Bert (van Marwijk - head coach of the Dutch national team) says that this is just one once. Two matches and that's it. After Norway, I will definitely finish."
Recall that van der Sar finished playing for the national team after Holland's departure from the European Championship, losing to Russia (1:3).

Edwin van der Sar: "We'd better play on artificial turf"

The Manchester United goalkeeper, who repelled the decisive 11-meter shot from Nicolas Anelka, expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of the lawn at Luzhniki in a conversation with a SE correspondent, but reproached UEFA for this, not the Russian side.

The stadium in Moscow is good, - admitted the Dutchman. - The atmosphere in Luzhniki was great, which, unfortunately, I can't say about the field. I slipped before the goal against our goal, the other players couldn't keep their balance either. I don't think it was a good idea for Uefa to try to replace the artificial pitch and lay down the natural pitch at the last moment. I know that Russian people have done a lot to make the new lawn of high quality. In general, everything related to the match, they organized very well. But next time, I think UEFA should choose arenas where the need to change the field cannot arise at all.

- What are the first feelings of the goalkeeper who won the penalty shootout in the Champions League final?

- The series was won by the whole team, and I just gave her all possible help. After all, much also depended on the strength and accuracy with which the partners hit. And experience may have helped me to repel the last blow. Some instinct suggested that Anelka would shoot right in this corner...

May 23, 2008

At every World Cup, the best teams try to answer one question: who is stronger in modern world football, Europe or Latin America. This time you will remember the three best Latin American teams: ball wizards from Brazil, temperamental Argentines and explosive Uruguayans and three best European teams: uncompromising Italians, technical Germans and purposeful Englishmen.
Championship titles:
Brazil - 1958,1962,1970,1994
Argentina - 1978, 1986
Uruguay - 1930.1950
Italy - 1934, 1938, 1982
Germany - 1954,1974,1990
England - 1966

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Edwin van der Sar can, without any exaggeration, be called a unique footballer - the peak of his career fell between 35 and 40 years old, the age when most players retire from football.

Edwin van der Sar

• Country: Holland.
• Position: goalkeeper.
• Born: October 29, 1970.
• Height: 197 cm.

Biography and career of a football player

Edwin was born in the small town of Voorhout, located in the province of South Holland, where he also started playing football in local clubs. Since childhood, he was much taller than his peers, so somehow it turned out by itself that he stood at the gate.

“I played in an amateur children's team for two years, and once the coach said:“ You know, you are the tallest, get in the goal. Then I thought: “This is the last time I play football,” Edwin later recalled.

It is not known how the fate of van der Sar would have developed if the then Noordwijk coach had not been on a short footing with Louis van Gaal and advised him to pay attention to the young goalkeeper.

Ajax

1990-1999

So van der Sar ended up at Ajax, and a little later, Louis van Gaal became the head coach of the team. Despite this, Edwin had to sit behind Stanley Menzo for two and a half years, the second at that time, after van Breukelen, the goalkeeper of the Dutch national team.

Only in the middle of the 1992-1993 season, van der Sar took a place at the gates of Ajax, but he took it firmly, remaining the permanent gatekeeper of the Amsterdam club for seven years.

Despite being tall even for a goalkeeper, van der Sar had good jumping ability and excellent reaction. "Van der Seive" was the nickname given to him by his teammates. And for such a component as playing with his feet, Edwin still remains one of the best goalkeepers in the history of world football.

The best season for both the club and the goalkeeper was the 1994-1995 season, when, to victory in the national championship, as well as in the European Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup, Edwin van der Sar was recognized as the best goalkeeper in Europe.

By the way, speaking for Ajax, van der Sar scored a goal against De Grafshap, converting a penalty. it is impossible to name him, of course, but one scored ball eat in track record not every goalkeeper.

Juventus

1999-2001

The transition to the strongest championship at that time was undoubtedly a step forward, especially considering that Ajax players began to actively buy up richer clubs, especially since, thanks to the decision on the Bosman case, the existing limit on foreign players was canceled.

At Juventus, van der Sar spent two seasons and spent them on high level. I repeat, Serie A was the strongest European league at that time, and Juventus twice became second in the championship during these years, the first time losing a point to Lazio, the second - two points to Roma.

By the way, it is interesting that Carlo Ancelotti, who coached the club at the time, even changed the tactics of the team's game when moving from defense to attack because of van der Sar. The fact is that in the Dutch championship, goalkeepers traditionally took part in the beginning of the attack, and van der Sar, accustomed to such a game from childhood, played great with his feet.

“At first, I was required to immediately kick the ball away from the goal. But now the coach knows that I can start a sharp attack, and uses this quality of mine,” the goalkeeper himself explained this.

In general, foreign goalkeepers, given the level of the Italian goalkeeper school, have a very hard time in the Apennines. Van der Sar, for example, became the first goalkeeper - a legionary of Juventus.

Before the start of the 2001-2002 season, Juventus acquired Gianluigi Buffon, and the club's management made it clear that it was he who would be the main bet. Therefore, van der Sar left Turin.

Fulham

2001-2005

At the time of the transfer to Fulham, van der Sar was already 30 years old - the age for the goalkeeper is far from critical, but many people perceived this transfer as the beginning of the sunset of the Dutch goalkeeper's career.

“Yes, he plays in the elite championship, but big clubs no longer need him,” fans and experts reasoned something like this.

So it was at first - Edwin van der Sar spent four seasons in the "summer residents", while remaining the main goalkeeper of the Dutch national team, and highest achievement Fulham have been 9th in the league over the years.

But everything changed overnight.

"Manchester United"

2005-2011

In the summer of 2005, van der Sar found himself at Manchester United, which for several years, after leaving, experienced problems at the post of number 1.

It was not clear that they decided to solve this problem with the help of a 35-year-old goalkeeper, last years playing far from being the strongest club. And many openly laughed at this transfer.

But Sir Alex knew what he was doing, otherwise he would not have been a great coach. In the person of van der Sar, Manchester United acquired a reliable rear, and the fans forgot about the goalkeeper problem for six years. Four league titles were won by the Red Devils in van der Sarom in goal.

And the Dutchman himself updated several "eternal" records for the number of "dry" minutes. First, the Premier League record set by Peter Cech fell (van der Sar did not miss 1032 minutes in a row). Edwin went on to set the English Championship record since 1979 (1,103 clean minutes), then surpassed the British record (1,212 minutes), and finally the world record with 1,311 minutes without conceding a goal in the national championship.

It was in 2009, and it is not surprising that in that season Edwin van der Sar was named the best goalkeeper in Europe for the second time in his career and achieved this at the age of 38. And a year earlier, van der Sar's save in the post-match penalty shootout with London's Chelsea brought Manchester his third ever European Cup.

Van der Sar's farewell to Manchester United could have been not just beautiful, but outstanding, or something (I don't even know which epithet is more appropriate). He last played for the Red Devils on 28 May 2011 in the Champions League final against Barcelona. Alas, United lost that match, and we must admit that we lost on the case.

Holland national team

1995-2008

In 1994, Edwin van der Sar, as part of the Dutch national team, went to the World Cup in the USA, but only as a substitute goalkeeper. And he played his first match for the national team on June 7, 1995.

The debut was not the most successful - the Dutch lost the match qualifying tournament Belarus national team. But the hardest thing is the beginning: later van der Sar became the first number of the "orange" team for a long 13 years, taking part in four European championships and two world championships (the Dutch missed the 2002 world championship), where he was invariably the main goalkeeper .

Three of these six tournaments the Dutch left after defeats in the penalty shoot-out. Particularly offensive were the defeats in the semi-finals of the 1998 World Cup from the Brazilian national team and from Italy.

According to many fans, the Dutch team was the best team in those tournaments, and deserved to win at least one of them. And here I’ve heard reproaches against van der Sar: if only he knew how to reflect a penalty…

Yes, come on! No goalkeeper has ever lost a penalty shootout. The goalkeeper can win it, but field players always lose, because the chances of a kicker from 11 meters are incommensurably higher than the chances of standing in the frame.

After the 2008 European Championship, Edwin van der Sar announced his retirement from the national team, but played two more qualifying matches for it.

Farewell match by Edwin van der Sar

And with big football legendary goalkeeper said goodbye on August 3, 2011. At the Amsterdam Arena stadium, Ajax and the Dream Team met, for which Van der Sar's former partner in Manchester United and the Dutch national team played.

Edwin himself also played for Dream, which won with a score of 2:1.

Titles by Edwin van der Sar

Command

1. Four-time Dutch champion.
2. Three-time winner of the Dutch Cup.
3. Three-time winner of the Dutch Super Cup.
4. Four-time English champion.
5. Two-time FA Cup winner.
6. Three-time English Super Cup winner.
7. Two-time Champions League winner.
8. UEFA Cup Winner.
9. European Super Cup Winner.
10. Winner of the Intercontinental Cup.
11. Bronze medalist of the European Championships in 2000 and 2004.
12. Semi-finalist of the 1998 World Cup.

Individual

1. The best goalkeeper in Europe in 1995 and 2009.
2. Holland's best goalkeeper 1994-1997.
3. The best player in the Netherlands in 1998.

• Van der Sar is the only goalkeeper in the world to win the Champions League with two different clubs.
• In 2016, van der Sar resumed his playing career. True, only for one match - his first club Noordwijk, which played in the fourth division, was left without goalkeepers, and Edwin had to enter the field. The game ended 1-1 and Van der Sar saved a penalty!

• Van der Sar is the record holder for the number of clean sheets in the matches of the final stage of the European Championships - 594. Van der Sar did not concede at all (in the match group stage against the French team, he did not take part, and in the quarterfinals with Yugoslavia he was replaced with a score of 4:0 in favor of the Netherlands).
• Van der Sar was 40 years and 212 days old on May 28, 2011, the day Manchester United played in the Champions League final against Barcelona. He is the oldest player to have played in the Champions League final.
• In the list of the best goalkeepers of the twentieth century, compiled by a survey of experts and journalists in 2000, Edwin van der Sar took 29th place. But let's not forget that it best years fell on the current century

Family and personal life of Edwin van der Sar

Edwin is a model of an exemplary family man, his name has never appeared on the pages of the yellow press and no scandals have ever been associated with him. His wife is Annemarie van Kesteren. The couple have been married since 2006 and have a son and a daughter.

Having finished playing, van der Sar did not stay out of football - he is now the general director of his native Ajax.

2011

2005 1995 and with Manchester United 2008 year. IN 1995 And 2009

1992 of the year and the Champions League 1995 of the year. IN 1995 1996 1997/98 ).

IN 1999

2001

2005

5 May 2007 2006/07

↓

Edwin van der Sar is a Dutch footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Finished career in 2011 year. For more than thirteen years, Van der Sar was the main goalkeeper and captain of the Netherlands national team, for which he played 130 matches, which is a national team record.

Van der Sar began his career at Ajax, where he spent nine years. Then he played for Juventus and Fulham, and in 2005 moved to Manchester United. Van der Sar is one of the few players to have won the UEFA Champions League with two different clubs: with Ajax in 1995 and with Manchester United 2008 year. IN 1995 And 2009 years van der Sar was recognized as the best European goalkeeper.

Edwin van der Sar began his career in the clubs of his hometown, where he was noticed by Louis van Gaal. As a result, van der Sar moved to Ajax, becoming one of the key players in the second "golden generation" of the club. He won four league titles, three Dutch Cups and a UEFA Cup with Ajax. 1992 of the year and the Champions League 1995 of the year. IN 1995 year he was recognized as the best goalkeeper in Europe. Van der Sar also played in the Champions League final 1996 of the year, however, in that match, Ajax lost to Juventus in the penalty shoot-out. In total, van der Sar played 226 matches for Ajax and scored one goal from the penalty spot (against De Grafschap in the season 1997/98 ).

IN 1999 In the year van der Sar moved to the Italian club Juventus, for which he played 66 matches in Serie A, after which he lost his place at the gate. He became the first non-Italian goalkeeper in the history of Juventus.

Dissatisfied with his role as substitute goalkeeper at Juventus, van der Sar moved to Premier League club Fulham in 2001 year for an amount of about £ 7.1 million. In total, he played 154 matches for the summer residents.

Van der Sar joined Manchester United on 10 June 2005 year, the amount of the transfer was not disclosed (according to some reports, it amounted to £ 2 million). Head coach United Sir Alex called van der Sar the team's best goalkeeper since Peter Schmeichel.

5 May 2007 Van der Sar took a penalty against Manchester City to secure a 1-0 victory for United in the Manchester derby. The following day, Chelsea failed to beat Arsenal at the Emirates, guaranteeing United's ninth Premier League win and Van der Sar's first English league medal. Edwin was named to the PFA Team of the Year at the end of the season. 2006/07 . Three months later, van der Sar became the hero of the FA Super Cup match, parrying three Chelsea kicks from the penalty mark in a penalty shoot-out, after which United became the winners of the Super Cup.

Season 2007/08 became very successful for van der Sar: he helped the club win the Premier League title, as well as the Champions League. In the Champions League final, it was van der Sar's save from Nicolas Anelka's penalty shootout that ensured Manchester United's victory over Chelsea.

12 December 2008 2009/10 .

January 27 2009 of the year, after beating West Bromwich Albion 5-0, van der Sar helped Manchester United set a new club record and a Premier League record with 11 clean sheets ( 1032 minutes) in a row. Previous record set by Peter in season 2004/05 , was 10 matches ( 1025 minutes). The series of clean sheets did not end there, and four days later van der Sar broke the English Championship record held by Reading's Steve Deth ( 1103 minutes) and set to 1979 year. On February 8, van der Sar held another "dry match" with West Ham, and his streak lasted until 1212 minutes, beating the British record set by Aberdeen goalkeeper Bobby Clarke ( 1155 minutes) in 1971 year.

18th of Febuary 2009 van der Sar's "dry streak" lasted until 1302 minutes, surpassing the single-season world record set by José Maria Bulhubasic ( 1289 minutes) in the Chilean Championship 2005 year. The record streak came to an end against Newcastle on 4 March when van der Sar conceded a goal in the 9th minute of the match. In total, van der Sar spent 1311 minutes without conceded goals in the championship. This "clean sheet" was a key factor in winning Manchester United's 11th Premier League title. Van der Sar has won the Golden Glove award this season with 21 clean sheets in the Premier League.

Van der Sar injured his finger in the Audi Cup pre-season match and missed 12 of United's old games of the season. 2009/10 . October 6 2009 van der Sar made his first appearance since injury in United's reserves game against Everton. On 17 October, he returned to the main squad, playing in a match against Bolton, which ended in a 2-1 victory for United. On November 21, van der Sar was injured again and was out for 12 matches, including due to family circumstances (his wife suffered a cerebral hemorrhage before Christmas). January 16 2010 he returned to the team when United beat Burnley 3-0.

February 26 2010 van der Sar extended his contract with United for one year, until the end of the season 2010/11 . In the end of January 2011 Edwin announced his decision to retire at the end of the season 2010/11 .

Van der Sar's last game was the Champions League final. 2010/11 against Barcelona, ​​in which the Catalan club won with a score of 3: 1.

It rarely happens that the subject of an interview FFT becomes CEO football club. But it turns out even less often that the CEO is also an eight-time winner of gold medals in the championships of two countries and has two Champions League cups in his piggy bank.

“The way I try to make my club more successful in terms of generating income and winning titles is similar to my captaincy in the days when I played,” says Edwin van der Sar, Ajax CEO, looking for similarities between dominance in the penalty area and in the boardroom. The Dutchman believes that, despite the lack of rich business experience and an impressive store of knowledge in this area, almost 20 years spent in football give him the necessary vision of how to manage the club. In particular, the club where, between 1990 and 1999, he demonstrated great game, four times became the champion of the Netherlands, won three Dutch Cups, the UEFA Cup and the Champions League Cup, defeating Milan in 1995.

All of the above should be of great help to Edwin when he answers your questions about his excellent career.

- Have you always dreamed of becoming a goalkeeper? Remember the day you first stepped into the gate?

Chris Ambler, Portsmouth

- For the first year and a half I was a field player. But one day our keeper didn’t come to the game, and the coach told me: “Edwin, you are the tallest, so you will be at the gate.” And things went so well that in the end I stayed there.

For many years I played for a small amateur team Noordwijk and did not even count on the fact that my dream of becoming a professional football player would ever come true. When I was about 19 years old, I received an offer from Sparta (Rotterdam) to be their third goalkeeper. However, they were only willing to pay for my moving. So I decided to stay at Noordwijk. And then a few days later they called me from Ajax and asked me to come and sign a contract with them, which I did.

- What do you think about the growing popularity of this type of goalkeeper as the goalkeeper-last defender? You always played well with your feet, didn't you contribute to such popularity?

Nev Sing, Facebook

- Back in the 90s at Ajax, we developed a system in which I participated in building a positional attack, and this can be useful if you want to stick to a certain style of play. But sometimes I think people give it too much importance. The goalkeeper is on the field primarily to prevent the ball from entering the goal.

“When Louis van Gaal worked in England, he seemed a little eccentric at times. Was he the same at Ajax?

Laura Matthews, Facebook

- In fact, he has not changed much in terms of how he communicates with the press and how he behaves in everyday life (say, at a dinner party). I visited one of Manchester United's training sessions one day when he coached the team, and I saw again the same goal-oriented person who constantly focuses on the progress of his players. The way he interacted with the players, the key elements of training and his general rules- all this was very familiar to me, although many years had passed.

- Do you think any other Dutch team will be able to lift the Champions League trophy? Unfortunately, this is now unlikely.

Andy Green, Merseyside

– [puffed out his cheeks] It will be very, very difficult to do. Even in my time, 20 years ago, it was really a huge achievement, but then there was a team per country in the tournament, and in the final stages of the competition there were only about 16 teams.

With the adoption of the new model, it can be said that to some extent all the romance has gone. And although some new rules are being adopted, it seems to me that the big clubs will always dominate the tournament, because with their huge budget they will still bypass the rest of the clubs.

- That Ajax squad was full of players that any European club wanted to get. With whom did Juventus have to compete for what, in order to finally get your signature on the contract?

Paul Kelly, Facebook

- When I left Ajax in 1999, I went to Liverpool and spoke with Gerard Houllier there. I was shown around Anfield, met with the chairman of the board of the club and some of the players. I thought about this for a long time, but when Juventus came to me, I decided that playing in Italy would be a much bigger challenge for me. But just as I was about to move to Juventus, an offer came from Manchester United! At the time, I was talking to Alex Ferguson's brother, even though I was about to sign with Juve. I liked the idea of ​​going to a country with a completely different culture and style of play, but moving to a Serie A club was a leap into the unknown for me.

I later found out that Ferguson was really interested in signing me, but the chairman of the board wanted to sign Mark Bosnich as a free agent instead. Therefore, I was always predicted for the role of Peter Schmeichel's successor, but in the end it took six months more than planned, and at that time other goalkeepers auditioned for this role. While I was at Fulham, I also heard about interest from Arsenal that never materialized into something concrete that I regretted at the time. And that's why I was especially happy when several times in my career United and I won against Arsenal [laughs].

- When you played at Juventus with Zinedine Zidane, what was the most amazing thing about his game? And what was the Frenchman like as a person?

Will Clay, Yorkshire

“He was a completely normal guy. Italy has all these pretentious guys with beautiful cars and expensive clothes, but Zidane has always been very laid-back. He was often seen wearing jeans and a white T-shirt. He did not hover in the clouds and at the same time demonstrated an incredibly high-quality game. When you passed to him, and the ball flew a little clumsily, he took control of it so clearly that the ball immediately gave way. He knew exactly what was happening around him and could pass to any zone. Sometimes it seemed that he moved much faster with the ball than without it.

- What did you say to Ariel Ortega right before the Argentine "butted" you and received a red card at the 1998 World Cup?

Darren Walsh, Facebook

- Ortega wanted to earn a penalty for his team by allegedly tripping over Jaap Stam's foot. And as he rose from the lawn, I bent over him and "expressed doubt about his origin." He got angry and stood up too abruptly!

- Did you have nightmares when you thought about Francesco Totti at Euro 2000? Do you think you could save that penalty? And how hard was it to lose in the semi-final like that?

Gustav Henriksen, Maastricht

- Penalty "panenka" was not the hardest part of everything that we faced. A goal is a goal, and it doesn't matter if they score it with a "panenka" or something else. No, if I had nightmares from that match, they would most likely be associated with all those penalties that we did not convert. We missed two penalty kicks in regular time and then three more in the penalty shootout. Francesco Toldo parried three blows - two of them were from Frank de Boer - but Patrick Kluivert once still hit the Italians. And that ball from Jap Stam probably still remains somewhere on the upper tier outside the goal! We managed to miss five shots out of six, which is obviously too much if you want to get to the final...

- How did you feel when Gigi Buffon took your place at Juve? If you remember that time, did they make the right choice? Or do you think that it was necessary to leave you?

Jimmy Wainwright, Cardiff

- All this happened under not the most pleasant circumstances, although, I must admit, at Juventus I did not reach the level that I demonstrated in Holland. That summer, I even asked for a meeting to hear their ideas for the upcoming season. I was told that they were going to buy a couple of new players, but they assured me that I did not need to worry at all. Then, I think, a week later they signed Buffon for something like £30 million. Of course, for a while that deal was already in the negotiation stage, but they decided not to tell me anything about it when I came to that meeting. So yes, it took me by surprise and I had to go back and look at all the options available to pursue my career.

- Why did you decide to move from Juventus to Fulham? We weren't really the biggest club at the time!

Raf M, Twitter

- At that time in Italy there was just a big hype around goalkeepers: Buffon came to Juve, Francesco Toldo moved to Inter Milan, and Sebastian Frei to Parma. In the top clubs then, one might say, there was a "crush" between the keepers. But then, let's say, I stayed away. Then I spoke with representatives of Ajax, Liverpool and Dortmund. The last two clubs wanted to wait until after the summer transfer window. But I didn't want to be in limbo for so long. Fulham had big ambitions: they became champions of the first division and advanced to the Premier League, they began to buy many new players. And I wanted to get game practice. I consulted with Louis van Gaal, who at that time coached the Dutch national team, and he immediately approved of my choice. It can be said that I considered this transition as a small step back in order to try to take a few steps forward in the future.

What was Mohammed Al Fayed like as a person during your time at the club? Did he do any particularly strange things?

Matt Bagnall, Twitter

- Of course, he did many unusual things, he was an eccentric! Before the match, he appeared at the edge of the field, then went straight to the field and waved a scarf. It usually happened that he came up to me to say hello while I was warming up. He often interacted with the players. On match days, he came to our locker room and sometimes even flew to training in his helicopter. And a couple of times we've had hit streaks, he's given each player a giant bag of food from his Harrods.

- Were you surprised by the dismissal of Jean Teegan from the post of head coach of Fulham in 2003? It seemed like a tough decision, given that he took the team to the Premier League in 2001 and kept them in the top flight the following year.

Trevor Bailey, Facebook

- It was very sad, especially for me, as he was the coach who brought me to the club. Jean was well versed in football, one could immediately say that he played at a very high level. Sometimes he trained with us, and then his skill was immediately visible.

- Did you ever regret that then, in 2001, you did not go straight from Juventus to Manchester United? That you had to spend four more seasons at Fulham before moving to Manchester?

Darren Chin, Brunei

- I really liked London, but I did not plan that I would play for Fulham for four seasons. I thought that I would spend a year or two there, and then move on. Toward the end of my career at Fulham, I even extended the contract for a short period so that the club would receive money for me in the event of my transfer. They told me they wouldn't let me play unless I agreed to renew my contract!

I found out that United wanted to sign me when I found a voicemail from Alex Ferguson on my phone. It was a special day. At that moment, I thought: “That’s why I came to London – to finally take the next step forward.” Ferguson told me that he needed a player who could lead the defense and direct the players. He said he knew that if the team came under pressure, I wouldn't let the excitement get the better of me.

- What did you refer to? Special attention, when you studied how the opponent's players take penalties? And what was going on in your head when Nicolas Anelka approached the penalty mark in the 2008 Champions League final in a penalty shootout?

PenaltyKickStat, Twitter

- I remember before that match I studied a huge number of penalty kicks from Chelsea players on DVD. For example, I analyzed about 40 penalties that Frank Lampard took earlier in his career. I made a lot of notes and noted for myself that Nicolas Anelka almost always took a penalty to the right corner of the goalkeeper. Later I heard that Chelsea also studied my game and found that I usually throw to the right. Therefore, I think the players were warned to shoot in the corner to my left, which many of them did. I assumed that Anelka would still choose the other side to strike, and, fortunately, that's exactly what happened.

When I saved his penalty, it seemed to me that for a few seconds I was just somewhere in another world. I don't think there will ever be a more emotional moment in my life than when I realized we had just won the Champions League final and saw my whole team running towards me. It was the most bright moment my entire career.

- Do you often remember how John Terry slipped (and chuckle a little about it)?

Peter Johnston, Facebook

- No, I don’t laugh at this, because I understand that I was miraculously lucky. At that moment, fortune really smiled at us. I must admit, the field was terrible - I slipped a few times myself.

You are credited for ending the long feud between Ruud van Nistelrooy and Marco van Basten so that van Nistelrooy could qualify for Euro 2008. What did you say to them to smooth out the conflict?

Thijs van Damme, Facebook

- I would not say that I became the one who was able to reconcile them. I just expressed my opinion, as the captain of the team, about what will benefit our squad. I drew attention to how valuable Van Nistelrooy could be for us, said that he could be an important player for us in this tournament. I think they are both very stubborn, seriously. In general, I can interact with different people, so I just expressed my thoughts to everyone. But it wasn't like I arranged a meeting or something and demanded that they put all their differences aside.

Did you ever get bored during that period in 2008/09 when you had 14 straight shutouts and Gary Neville, Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra provided an impenetrable barrier ahead of you?

Griffin Pyle, Twitter

- No, of course not! [laughs] But I said at the time that this streak would mean absolutely nothing if we weren't champions at the end of the season. Everything was done to achieve this goal. The media and the people who surrounded me, this series of "dry" matches interested me a little more than myself.

How frustrated were you that your long clean sheet was cut short by a mistake against Newcastle when Peter Lovenkrands scored from a rebound? I have no doubt that you would prefer that the series was interrupted by some magnificent blow.

Lewis Migor, Facebook

- Yes, I would prefer this series to be interrupted by some “gun” right in the “nine”. Of course, I could have held this record longer. But on the other hand, I remember another moment when a West Brom player hit the crossbar 10 minutes before I was about to break the record. Therefore, everything is fair.

- It is often said that when Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo were younger, they played at about the same level, but later on they reached different heights, because Ronaldo devoted himself more to improving as a player. Do you think such talk is fair?

Sam Hurst, Lester

“They both worked really hard on the pitch, but Cristiano was one level up. Outside football field Ronaldo paid attention to many other things, for example, how to properly relax and strengthen your body.

He often stayed after training to work on free throws, and then he would come up to me and say: “Edwin, could you stand in the goal?” I used to say that I was already old and that it would be better for him to practice with one of the young goalkeepers, but he insisted that I be in goal because he wanted to score against me. I often teased him and said things like: “You won’t give a damn about me, Ronnie, and you know it. Better ask a reserve keeper, it will be better for your self-confidence. He began to worry and answered: “No, no. You should be at the gate!” But Cristiano is indeed a very nice guy and the overall impression of him is not really a reflection of his personality.

Is the United you played for, whose players have won three Premier League titles in a row and also reached three Champions League finals in four years, an underestimated team? United are not talked about as one of the best teams in history, but few clubs have managed to win so many trophies ...

Brian Woodford, Facebook

Well, if we wanted to be really the best team, then we had to win two of the three Champions League finals that we played at the time. For example, if we had won in 2009, we would have been the best team in Europe in the last two seasons and the first team to ever win two Champions League titles in a row. Therefore, if we defeated Barcelona in the final in Rome, we would be considered a great team. But, of course, if you look at the players that we had in the roster at that time, we were definitely a very good team.

- What did you think about the pressure that David de Gea was subjected to at the beginning of his career at United? Is the English media too harsh on foreign goalkeepers?

Aaron Cassidy, Coventry

– No, at that time I did not consider the criticism too harsh. He didn't play very well and made mistakes, which is probably to be expected when you come in like this. big club like United at such a young age. This is a new country for you, where people speak a different language and where there is a completely different style of play. But since then he has done a great job and is able to completely change the attitude towards himself. Now he has become a really good goalkeeper.

- What happened to the Dutch team, Edwin? Last year's Euro without Orange fans was no longer the same ...

Ryan Byrne, Liverpool

- I think from time to time teams fail in qualifying. Remember the same 2002, when we did not get to the World Cup. Today, I believe that we lack top players aged 25-26-27 who can lead the team. When you lose twice to Iceland, you don't deserve to go to the Euros.

- During your stay at United, you had to leave the field twice, and in such cases a field player remained in the goal. In the match against Portsmouth, this player was Rio Ferdinand, and in the game against Tottenham it was John O'Shea. What advice did you give them then?

Hannah Stewart Twitter

“In those situations, I didn’t really have time for advice at all. Against Portsmouth, I suffered a groin injury and Tomas Kuszczak, who replaced me, later received a red card, so by the time Ferdinand got in goal, I was already high up in the stands. And in the match against Spurs, I broke my nose after a collision with Robbie Keane and went to the tribune room in order to get help. A few minutes later I heard a deafening roar: it turned out that John O'Shea made a very good save!

- How well can you hear the fans behind the goal during the match?Can you remember the strangest shout from a fan?

Michael Baker, London

- West Ham fans are not the nicest guys. So to speak, lexicon there were enough of them...limited. But what words were thrown at you at the opponent's stadium usually depended on whether you won or lost the match. When your team takes the lead, you don't have to rush to take a goal kick, and that pissed the fans off. And when your team loses and you need to quickly get the ball that flew over the goal, only ridicule comes from the stands. But in general the atmosphere created by the English fans was great and when I lived in England I felt at home.

– I heard that in 2012 you took part in the New York Marathon. Why did you decide to do this and how long did you run?

Nathaniel Bullock, Leeds

A few years ago, a friend of mine told me that he was going to take part in this marathon. I really liked this idea, and I told him: “Maybe you can wait a little more? I will end my career and we will run together.” But then it took a little longer to wait, because I had several renewals with United [laughs]. As a result, the preparation for the marathon took me about two and a half months. It turned out to be a big burden for my body, it took me enough time to recover. But in the end I ran 4 hours 19 minutes.

Although his debut in the national team was, to put it mildly, not very successful. After a series of superb performances for Ajax in the Champions League, then-Orange manager Guus Hiddink selected Van der Sar in June 1995 for a European Championship qualifier against Belarus. However, there was a huge confusion. The Dutch lost in Minsk, and Sergei Gerasimets scored the only goal after Van der Sar's mistake. Five years later, all this - the loss of the Dutch to the Belarusians and Van der Sar's mistake - seems even more unrealistic.

Unlike most Ajax players in the mid-90s, Van der Cap is not a graduate of the club's famous football school. He started playing in the amateur team "Noordwijk", and got to Amsterdam in 1989 thanks to the friendship of the coach of "Noordwijk" Ruud Bring with Louis van Gaal. Four years after Stanley Menzo's several blunders in the UEFA Cup quarter-final against Auxerre, Van der Sar had a chance to win a place in the starting line-up, which he used brilliantly. Largely thanks to Van der Sar, Ajax won the Champions League, the Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup in the mid-90s, and also had no equal in the Dutch championship for three years in a row. However, after the decisions of the European Court in the Bosman case, the great team fell apart. Van der Cap, by the way, stayed in Amsterdam the longest. It wasn't until a year ago that he finally decided to change the scene.

Many leading European clubs claimed the Dutch goalkeeper, including Manchester United, who were looking for a replacement for Peter Schmeichel. Van der Cap chose Juventus. "I decided to go to Italy because I really enjoy learning about other cultures and there isn't much difference between Holland and England. But that doesn't mean I don't like the Premier League. Maybe I'll have time to play in England...More important everything for me was to be in a great club... Juventus is without a doubt one of the greatest clubs in Europe."

In Turin, Van der Cap got used to it very quickly. Juventus have conceded just 20 goals in 34 league games, far fewer than any other team, and it's not the goalkeeper's fault that the Turints missed the Scudetto. Nevertheless, Van der Cap admits that the first season in Italy was not as easy for him as it might seem at first glance. "Goalkeeping tasks in Italy and Holland differ significantly. In Holland, entertainment is as important as the result, and therefore creative functions are assigned to everyone, including goalkeepers. In Italy, the result is the only criterion, and for goalkeepers the most important thing is reliability".

Naturally, Van der Sar had to rebuild. However, the Dutchman so impressed the coach of "lOventyca" Carlo Ancelotti with his ability to make accurate passes with his feet to the partners that the goalkeeper was allowed "liberties" when putting the ball into play, and one can even say that over the past season the style of Juventus' actions when moving from defense to attack has undergone significant changes. "At first they demanded of me in critical situation immediately kick the ball away from the goal. But now they know that I can launch a sharp attack, and they use this quality of mine."

For now, the problem for Van der Sar is that he doesn't know Serie A strikers well.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, in order to achieve perfection, Van der Sar needs to improve his game on exits, especially at high innings. The Dutchman is also not a specialist in repelling penalty kicks. Both in Ajax in the 1996 Champions League final against his current club, and in the national team in the 1996 European Championship quarter-final against France, and in the 1998 World Cup semi-final against Brazil, he failed to save a single blow in the post-match series. However, Van der Cap believes that there is no pattern here.

"As the European Championship approaches, the pressure increases," says Edwin. "But I'm calm about it. I only have trouble sleeping when I miss a ball that, in my opinion, could be reflected."

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“In general, I think that the grandiose expectations of our fans cannot affect the performance of the national team for the worse. After all, we have long been accustomed to this, and then almost all of us play for big clubs. The main thing is to approach the European Championship in optimal physical condition.”

By the way, the fact that the Juventus player is protecting the gates of the Dutch is a good sign. In the post-war years, the Italians won two major tournaments, the 1968 European Championship and the 1982 World Cup, and both times the goalkeeper of the national team was the representative of the "old lady". namely Dino Zoff.