There are days football fans always dread to see,which they know is inevitable anyway.No,not the day they would lose a game they ought to win.It's not the day they get relegated from a particular championship.Rather,the day they lose a great asset in a team comes to mind.
People keep wondering if Manchester United 'keeper Edwin Van Der Sar is truly 40.With the kind of displays we've seen from him all season,we could be forgiven for thinking(or wishing)he was 25.He has been so excellent,and from 2005 when he was acquired from Fulham,he has gotten better every game.Sir Alex Ferguson once said, "I hope it wouldn't be impossible replacing him".
Sir Alex knows what he went through the last time a goalkeeping legend,Peter Schmeichel,left the club.Fabian Barthez,Tim Howard,Roy Carroll and more struggled to fit in. Only Van Der Sar did fit in.
While he admits his teammates have urged him to play on,he is determined to end his career on a high.Wembley represents a great chance for that,and Barcelona,a perfect club to do that against.
No doubt,replacing him is impossible.There would be nobody like him.Man United have to manage a goalkeeper close to his best,maybe Schalke's Manuel Neuer(if his agreement with Bayern Munich fails at the last minute) or Ajax Armstadam's Martin Stekelenberg(who also succeeded Van Der Sar at the Dutch national team) or Atletico Madrid's David De Gea(who's just 20).
None of these people would ever be Van Der Sar.Nobody can ever be.Manchester United are in a fix.