I lobbed Peter Schmeichel in a 5-0 win against Manchester United before becoming a fruit and vegetable seller
Today at 01:15 PM
Typically, most professional footballers tend to move into similar lines of work after hanging up their boots, or spend their days kicking back on the beach.
The likes of Gary Neville – who recently hailed William Saliba – Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane and Micah Richards all took up punditry after choosing to retire, while Gary Lineker, who backed Lee Carsley to replace Erik ten Hag before Ruben Amorim’s appointment, has become a household name with his skills as a presenter on BBC Match of the Day.
Others – like Mikel Arteta, Frank Lampard, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – moved into coaching, although some like to break the mould by leaping into a more random industry after ending their involvement in professional football, as Philippe Albert opted to do.
Philippe Albert – the man who lobbed Peter Schmeichel turned greengrocer
Newcastle fans will surely remember the name Philippe Albert – as Peter Schmeichel surely does after being left embarrassed by the Belgian back in 1996.
The man born in Bouillon defied what is expected of a central defender in the 84th minute of Newcastle’s famous 5-0 win over Manchester United back in October 1996, strolling forward before dinking the legendary Dane with an exquisite chip from outside the box.
It was one of 12 goals Albert scored for Newcastle across 137 appearances – along with seven assists – a decent record for a defender, who finished second in the Premier League with the Magpies in both the 1995/96 and 1996/97 campaigns.
The now 57-year-old also won 41 caps for the Belgium National Team, in addition to spells at Fulham, Charleroi, KV Mechelen and Anderlecht.
Becoming a greengrocer after 137 appearances for Newcastle
As aforesaid, Albert took the uncommon path of becoming a greengrocer after retiring from football.
The man who humiliated Schmeichel even spoke to the Guardian about his choice of career, saying: “I would prepare the produce for customers. I did it for 11 years and didn't touch the money I earned in my football career. Up early, finishing late, that's what I wanted: a normal life. I'm very proud of it. Otherwise when you stop football, you do nothing. You have no life.”
Albert did this job until 2012, before dabbling in some punditry work back home in Belgium, while also preparing the stables for his wife's equestrian business, as the Guardian add.
Quite the life, to say the very least.
