Fergie: Van is Our Man

By David Hobbs
July 13 2005

Sir Alex Ferguson has again reiterated that he has full faith in his latest goalkeeping acquisition, Edwin van der Sar, to fill the boots left by the Great Dane Peter Schmeichel.

The 34-year-old Holland international goalkeeper was the first player to be snapped up by Sir Alex Ferguson in this summer's transfer market following the departures of Roy Carroll and Ricardo.

Tim Howard's confidence has dropped in recent months and Ferguson is sure the former Fulham shot-stopper will be a success at Old Trafford.

"He has got experience in abundance. Captain of Holland, nearly 100 caps and a Champions League winner and great years with Ajax, plus Premiership experience with Fulham," he stated. "It's what we needed."

"When you have had a great goalkeeper like Peter Schmeichel in your team it is inevitable there will be comparisons and you can't get away from the name being mentioned.

"We decided to combat that and to cope with it you had to go for experience and personality. That's why we went down that route and got Edwin van der Sar.

Ferguson said the fact Van der Sar communicates in English is a major boost for his defence, who were under the French guidance of Fabien Barthez a few years ago.

"He talks all the time during matches," he continued. "It was one of the things I noted about him whenever we played against him. He keeps everybody on their toes.

"Fabien Barthez talked a fair bit when he was here but it was mainly in French. That was okay for Laurent Blanc and Mikael Silvestre but Edwin communicating in English will be a major help for the defence."

David Hobbs - Webmaster
[david@manutdweb.com]