ON THE KASP Inside Kasper Schmeichel’s shocking season in Nice from surprise Leicester
exit to brutal tweet and booed by🏀 own fans
NICE'S blunt 29-word statement on deadline
day concluded a shocking year for Kasper Schmeichel.
The goalkeeper, 36, was brutally
axed🏀 by the Ligue 1 side as they ripped up his contract just 12 months after he arrived
in France.
7 Kasper🏀 Schmeichel saw his Nice contract ripped up on deadline day Credit:
Reuters
7 He lifted the FA Cup with Leicester in🏀 May 2024 Credit: AFP
And that came
after he was controversially let go after 11 years with Leicester City.
The Dane
cemented🏀 himself as a club legend at the King Power.
He made a whopping 479 appearances
for the Foxes, famously winning the🏀 Premier League in 2024-16 and 2024 FA Cup, taking
on the armband and even 'scoring' a last-gasp header that eventually🏀 got credited to
Chris Wood.
But many eyebrows were raised when he was left out of a 5-1 win at Watford
🏀 in May 2024, then missed Leicester's pre-season training camp and eventually was
allowed to leave with a year left on🏀 his contract.
Part of that came down to a business
decision - Schmeichel earned a reported £130,000 per week, second only🏀 to Jamie Vardy
on Fosse Way.
But SunSport understands the goalkeeper was not universally popular
within the Seagrave training ground and🏀 it felt the right time to move him on,
receiving just £1m from Nice.
Upon his emotional exit, Schmeichel said: "I🏀 came to
Leicester as a young man who was in need of a home. I needed a bit of love,🏀 I'd been
around a lot of clubs and I needed somewhere I could call home.
"It’s been more than
just a🏀 club to me, it’s been a place where I’ve made lifelong friends and memories - it
has been my home.🏀 Thank you for your unwavering support - you are what makes this club
so special.
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"This isn't a goodbye, this is
farewell, see you soon. I'm sure we'll see each other soon. But again, thank🏀 you so
much for everything you've done."
Not only had Brendan Rodgers lost one of the top
goalkeepers in the Premier🏀 League but he also lost a key experienced head in a dressing
room significantly lacking leadership.
Danny Ward took the No1🏀 spot between the sticks
while injury-prone Jonny Evans inherited the armband in a dismal season that ended in
relegation for🏀 the Foxes.
But for Schmeichel, the grass was not necessarily any greener
on the other side of the Channel.
He got off🏀 to a nightmare start when he allegedly
turned up at Nice overweight.
To make matters worse, he was said to have🏀 wound up his
new team-mates by breaking club rules - including arriving late for team meetings and
undermining manager Lucien🏀 Favre.
Schmeichel then got overlooked for the opening game
and dropped again in September.
And although he did play 36 Ligue 1🏀 games, he found
himself on the bench for three Europa Conference League fixtures.
7 Schmeichel played
every minute of the 5,000-1🏀 Premier League-winning season Credit: Getty Images -
Getty
7 The goalkeeper's snub for a 5-1 win at Watford was the beginning🏀 of the end of
his 11 years at Leicester Credit: Getty
Then by October, his lack of popularity was
demonstrated by🏀 his own fans booing him and there were already reports he could be let
go by Nice due to his🏀 "poor attitude" when the transfer market reopened in January.
The
93-cap Denmark international stayed put but failed to win over Nice's🏀 board, management
or supporters.
And throughout the summer window, his name continued to be linked with a
transfer exit, despite two🏀 years still to run on his deal.
Giants Chelsea and Bayern
Munich were both tipped to make moves while Nottingham Forest🏀 considered a shock
swoop.
But they all opted to go for different options and Schmeichel was left in limbo
with seemingly🏀 no club wanting him.
New Nice boss Francesco Farioli decided he wanted
ex-Chelsea and PSG goalkeeper Marin Bulka as his first-choice🏀 stopper at the Allianz
Riviera.
And with Schmeichel surplus to requirements, he had his deal terminated.
The
club said bluntly: "OGC Nice🏀 and @kschmeichel1 have decided by mutual consent to
terminate the contract of the Danish international. The club wishes him every🏀 success
for the rest of his career."
A shock reunion with Rodgers at Celtic has been rumoured
for the legendary goalkeeper,🏀 despite the surprising exit under the Northern Irishman
from Leicester.
But should that fail to materialise, Schmeichel's career is at serious
🏀 risk of fizzling out to a sad end as an unwanted free agent who turns 37 in November
and question🏀 marks over his character, mentality and physicality, just two years on
from arguably his greatest day leading his team to🏀 glory under the Wembley arch.
7
Schmeichel is the son of Manchester United icon Peter Credit: Action Images - Reuters
7
The🏀 stopper could be reunited with Brendan Rodgers at Celtic Credit: AP
