Schmeichel reveals his dream move to Bayern broke down at the 11th hour… when he was on his way to the airport!
Kasper Schmeichel has revealed how he narrowly missed out on the chance to sign for Bayern Munich a couple of years ago.
Schmeichel was being lined up for a move to Munich when Bayern and Germany No 1 Manuel Neuer picked up an injury following the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
It would have been a dream come true for Schmeichel given that his grandfather instilled a love of Bayern in him from a young age.
In the end, Bayern pulled the plug on the deal for reasons unknown — and Schmeichel is now back in Bavaria aiming to dump them out of the Champions League with Celtic.
‘Yes, that’s correct, there were discussions about me joining Bayern,’ said Schmeichel. ‘It was after Manuel Neuer got his injury at the World Cup a couple of years ago.
‘Basically, everything was kind of agreed and it just fell through at the last second. You would have to ask Bayern what the problem was.
Schmeichel revealed that his dream move to Bayern Munich broke down at the 11th hour
The Danish No 1 insists he has no regrets and is delighted fate took him to Celtic
The Celtic keeper greets his opposite number after Bayern’s first-leg triumph
‘I’m not 100 per cent sure what happened, but I was kind of on my way to the airport.
‘Unfortunately, it didn’t materialise. It would have been a dream to have played for a club like this, but it wasn’t to be.
‘Everything happens for a reason. I’m very happy with where it’s brought me now. Sometimes life works in funny ways. I’m delighted to now be with Celtic.
‘My grandfather loved German football and Bayern Munich are kind of the flagship of German football, so he always talked about them.
‘It’s a club that I’ve followed from an early age. It’s great to play against them, but it would be even greater if we could pull off something.
‘I spoke to the hierarchy. I knew what my role was going to be. It was keeping the seat warm until Manuel came back. And I was more than fine with that.
Schmeichel catches up with Bayern boss Vincent Kompany after keeping Celtic in the tie
Schmeichel makes a save from Bayern striker Harry Kane during the first leg at Celtic Park
‘To have played for a club of this stature would have been more than enough. I said: “Send the contract”. I don’t even need to know what it is. I’ll sign it anyway.
‘So, yeah, it would have been a dream come true, but it wasn’t to be. And it’s brought me here now with Celtic. So I’m very happy with that as well.’
Schmeichel will need to be at the top of his game if Celtic are to pull off one of the greatest shocks in Champions League history.
The Celtic and Denmark No 1 will also be going up against Neuer, a player whom he first encountered almost 20 years ago and has grown to admire.
‘My first game against him was nearly 20 years ago,’ explained Schmeichel. ‘It was Germany Under-21s against Denmark Under-21s. I think we lost 4-0 that game or something.
‘Germany had a few good players in there. I do remember Neuer. I’d heard about this guy that played for Schalke at the time. He was a young guy, he was close to me in terms of age.
Schmeichel looks up to Neuer and insists the German revolutionised the position of goalkeeper
‘He was the captain of a big club at that age. I remember him coming out, there was a good 2,000 Schalke fans behind his goal screaming his name.
‘I thought: “Wow, this guy must have something”. So I obviously followed him very closely. I always enjoyed watching him. Like I say, for me, one of the best keepers to ever play.
‘He revolutionised the position of goalkeeper, that’s a fair assessment of what he’s done. He’s a keeper that’s just so complete in every aspect. So I always try to learn from him and really enjoy watching him.’
