Danish critics dismissed him as 'out of shape' ... but Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel insists he's NOT for quitting

Daily Mail​

20-05-2025

Kasper Schmeichel had grievous insult added to the shoulder injury he suffered while playing for Denmark against Portugal in March.
Making his 113th international appearance in the second leg of a Nations League play-off in Lisbon, the veteran keeper only stayed on the field after receiving treatment because his side had used their full quota of substitutes.
However, the 38-year-old's commitment to the cause in such trying circumstances wasn't universally appreciated.
In the aftermath of a 5-2 loss in extra-time, his performance was savagely criticised in some quarters.
One pundit, in particular, described the Celtic keeper as 'stubborn' and 'out of shape'. His assertion that Schmeichel was like 'a child with polio' caused widespread outrage throughout the country, with the Danish PFA even stepping in.
So much for an appreciation of the service he'd given the national cause across 12 years.
Amid the revulsion, many of those in Schmeichel's corner claimed he would be well within his rights to call time on his Denmark career.
If that was, indeed, the aim of those who made such venomous barbs, it seems likely they are going to be sorely disappointed.
'I love playing for Denmark,' said Schmeichel as he addressed the matter for the first time.
'When I was growing up, that was the dream. When I was a kid and I was visualising in the garden, I was visualising the stadium and wearing the Denmark shirt.
'So, to play for your country, to have played as many games as I have, to have captained my country, that, for me, is the ultimate thing that you can do as a footballer.
'To still have the opportunity, still have the ability, the drive, the love to do it, I wouldn't give that up. Definitely not.'
He has broad enough shoulders and a wealth of experience to deal with what was a trying period in his career.
Unable to avoid a debate which subsequently dominated news bulletins and back pages back home, his coping strategy was to stand back and let the fire rage without stoking it.
'I was born in the 80s and I grew up in the 90s and I genuinely believe it is the best era to have been a child, because we had technology, but we didn't have internet,' said Schmeichel.
'We didn't have phones and we weren't attached to all this stuff. And I learned very early in my career just not to read about myself.
'In all honesty, I haven't read a single word about it. Obviously, I've been made aware from different people, but I haven't read it.
'It is what it is. I play football, and football is the most popular sport in the world. And everyone's going to have opinions. And do you know what? That's great. It's great because football is a game of opinions. There's no right, there's no wrong.
'People are going to have opinions that are positive about you. They're going to have negative opinions about you.
'I take advice and I take praise and criticism from the people that are closest to me.'
This is unquestionably a strength. If high-profile sportspeople choose to go down rabbit holes online in their spare time, then the truth is they might never resurface.
Schmeichel doesn't preach to emerging talents about the perils of listening to voices in the shadows. But, if they want his advice, it's free and considered.
'If people ask me, I always say the same thing - just don't read it,' he explained.
'The only people's opinions you should care about are that of your coaches, your team-mates, your family, your friends, the people around you that know you, know your character, know the standards that you have.
'If you're falling below those standards - and the people around you that you respect and listen to are telling you that - then those are the opinions you should really care about.'
Paradoxically, the fact that he was hurting so much physically in the days following the Portugal match probably helped him block out the noise.
There was a real fear, he now admits, that injury would cost him any chance of playing against this season. Ensuring he would return on time for the Scottish Cup final became his sole focus.
'Before you get the final diagnosis of what happened, then you're always worried that could have been the season,' he said.
'For me, it was always a matter of maintaining a positive mindset and, once it was confirmed that it was a fracture, then there's time for it to heal.
'Now I've just got to make sure I'm doing all the other stuff, getting all the strength and flexibility back in it. The medical staff were great. They worked me very hard and it feels great now.'
The injury has been the only dark cloud in an otherwise outstanding season.
Schmeichel first sensed it might be as soon as he checked in at Celtic. Walking out for a pre-season friendly against Chelsea in Indiana last summer, the keeper was given conformation of the scale of the club he'd just joined.
'I followed Celtic a lot because of Joe (Hart.) I played up here (for Falkirk), obviously, and played against Celtic and knew the size of the club.
'And then joining the club, going to America and seeing the support and seeing the attention around the club, you really feel the size of it.
'When you're walking out of Notre Dame and half the stadium is Celtic colours and you're playing against a Premier League side, then you think: 'Wow, okay, this really is massive'.
'For me, I was looking for a club that has a winning culture. When you're coming into a culture like this, you're expected to win and you're expected to perform. And I love that pressure. I love that mentality that anything other than a win is not acceptable.'
This was one attraction of joining Celtic. Reuniting with his former boss at Leicester, Brendan Rodgers, was another.
'He came into Leicester and he wanted to win and he did win,' said Schmeichel who picked up the FA Cup under the Northern Irishman four years ago.
'He's very much about firstly creating a team that plays attractive football, very effective football, but also creating a winning culture.
'That was one of the things when he came to Leicester that he instilled. That level of professionalism where so much is expected of you and demanded of you every single day. And that's exactly the same here.
'He leaves you in absolutely no doubt of what's expected of you day in and day out. As a player, personally, that's something I love playing under.'
Schmeichel will do so for at least another season, with his current contract expiring just five months before his 40th birthday.
There may be a chill in their air when he next pulls on a Denmark shirt. At Celtic Park, there is only warmth.
'People are not going to love you everywhere you go,' acknowledged Schmeichel. 'But to have that support at Celtic from day one was incredible. The reception I got straight away was amazing and, walking around the city, people are so positive. It's been a joy, it really has.'