When the then-24-year-old Danish shot-stopper made the move to King Power Stadium from Leeds United in 2011, few could have imagined how the next 10 years would pan out.
Promotion to the top-flight of English football, winning the Premier League title, captaining the team in the UEFA Champions League, lifting the FA Cup trophy for the first time in the Club's history - and making some unbelievable saves in the process - are just some of the feats he has helped to achieve.
His commitment to the Football Club is unquestionable. His influence on the recent successes is immeasurable. And his leadership in the dressing room continues to drive the team forward.
Schmeichel has reached the pinnacle of the game, but as those who work with him closely on a daily basis will testify, he is far from finished yet…
Wes Morgan – ‘He’s been a very, very good friend’
He’s been a great ambassador for the Club. He came more or less at the same time, he was joining the Club six months before me and through our time at Leicester we’ve been together so I’ve known him very well. He’s a great football player also, he’s been great for the team and always wants to do the best he ever can.
He’s a fantastic ‘keeper and has shown his worth throughout the years and he’s a great asset for Leicester. Kasper has been doing the job week in, week out. He’s one of the best ‘keepers I’ve played with and thoroughly deserves all the credit and accolades he gets and he’s been a pleasure to play with.
Kasper has produced some fantastic moments and it’s always tough for a ‘keeper when you can go most of the game without having to do anything and then all of a sudden, the opposition has a chance on goal. It could punish you and Kasper is always there to make sure he pulls off a save or does something great where he comes out and sweeps up a ball through or whatever it might be.
Sometimes it’s a corner deep in stoppage time and we need our ‘keeper to stand up and punch the ball away or come through a crowd and when you’ve got someone like that behind you, it fills you with great confidence and I’m glad he’s on our side rather than anyone else’s.
He’s the vice-captain, but we always consult on issues on and off the pitch and he’s my right-hand man so to speak, he’s always been there. Anything that comes up to me, I always consult with Kasper and we’ll come to a decision together. We get on so well, we’ve had fun in the football environment and outside it, relaxing, going for meals. He’s been a very, very good friend.
He’s still playing at the highest level. As long as he’s producing the goods on the pitch, which he is, he’s got many more years to come. He’s always working hard on himself, making sure he’s in the best condition possible to perform at the highest level and you’ll see him early in the morning, he’s first in doing his work before anyone else and that’s the kind of guy he is, dedicated to his work, wants to improve and be the best he can and that’s why he’s playing at the top level.
Marc Albrighton – ‘I’ve certainly learnt so much off him’
Especially over the last five years, I’ve really grown to respect Kasper. His standards are sky high, that for me is the best way to be. Everything he does, he does to the best of his ability. He’s got no excuses, he just gets on with his job. This is all off the pitch, I think it’s incredible the way he conducts himself around the place.
He’s had to step in as the captain and he’s so consistent on the pitch. He leads like a captain and has took up that role really well. I’ve certainly learnt so much off him in terms of that mindset and that will to win. He’s the first in the training ground every single day, by the time I’m getting in the gym he’s finished his session and I’m one of the first in there.
I think that says a lot about him. People don’t see that from the outside. I’m sure they know what a good professional he is, but I see him dripping in sweat. His work ethic is incredible. He’ll then go out and be there best in training in terms of his goalkeeping.
He rarely makes mistakes, which then go out onto the pitch on a Saturday. I could probably count on one hand the amount of times that he has been at fault for a goal, which at my seven years here, it’s not bad going. The way he is, you go into a game, and he just wants the best. He wants to be the best; he wants Leicester to be the best. He’s got a real bond with this Football Club and with the people here and like I said earlier, the respect that he’s got around the place, I can only speak for me, is the highest of highs.
Mike Stowell - ‘He’s such an aspiration to the youngsters’
It’s been a journey. He’s the ultimate professional. It’s been a fantastic 10 years to watch him develop into ultimately one of the best ‘keepers in the Premier League, if not the best and in Europe. You always have aspirations of going as far as you can. Kasper came to us as a ready-made goalkeeper, he’s a dream come true really to coach.
You don’t actually need to coach Kasper, he came with all the tools. It’s just a matter of fine tuning it and keeping him at the top of his game, working him and giving him challenges in training, making it as realistic and as difficult as possible to push him all the way, because he loves that. You don’t have to motivate him every single day.
He’s such an aspiration to the youngsters as well because one thing we’ve always done here is involve the young ‘keepers. We don’t train separately, 16s, 18s, 23s, they never train on their own. I’ve always combined them. The reason being is the way to learn for these young goalkeepers is basically by watching and seeing. As much as you can stand there and talk to them, it’s being next to these top ‘keepers.
They can watch Kasper working close up and it’s the easiest way of coaching the youngsters and bringing them on, by working alongside Kasper. There’s no better example than him. As a professional, he’s absolutely top drawer. I’d put up with anything because of what he wants to achieve. He’s very demanding, that’s great, because he just wants the best.
You hear him more so now without the crowd there and that’s his desire. His hunger to win is there all the time, which is fantastic, and he brings that into training every single day. He’s so willing to do things and work hard.
He’s first in, last out, works hard and he’s a thinker. He thinks about the game constantly. He challenges me and keeps me on my toes, and I like to challenge him back and we seem to work well together that way. We have respect for each other, and we know how each other tick.
It’s a strange concept, football, because if ever a goalkeeper does anything wrong, more often than not you’ll always see the coaching staff turn round and look at the goalkeeping coach. Similarly, Kasper makes a save and you get people tapping you and you think: ‘That’s not me, that’s Kasper’. I see him do that week in, week out at training.
I’m as proud as punch to see what he’s achieved and where he’s got to in his career and it’s all well and truly deserved and it’s all his hard work. Working so closely with him for such a long time. I know he’s capable of that and it’s just an acceptance from me now and I see it and think yes, he does that.
I’d love to sit here and say I taught him how to kick that ball like he kicks it and how to do that save in a one-on-one, that’s all about him, he’s come so far. Taking on that position and making it his own, to be here for 10 years, I know what it’s like being at a club and playing over 400 games, that’s such an achievement.
And the way he’s come through, he’s not just arrived in the Premier League, he’s gone on loan, he’s gone to the outskirts, he's gone to Scotland, he’s gone to Notts County, Bury, all these places, not fancy clubs. He’s carved himself out a wonderful career but doing it the hard way.
To turn up and train and perform each week and play those games to that standard, for me, the one way of judging a world class ‘keeper is the mistakes he’s made and on one hand you’d count them, because he doesn’t make them. And if he does, it’s very rare.
He’s such a complete ‘keeper and so sure of himself and so reliable and it’s not easy. He turns up in big games every single week, he’s there, spot on and right at it. Mentally it’s not easy and physically it’s not easy. I’ve got two false knees thanks to Kasper because I’ve kicked so many balls to him!
Brendan Rodgers – ‘He’s been immense for me’
He’s been remarkable in terms of, first as a person. Just his intensity, his drive and his desire to be the best. Obviously when I came here, I wanted to bring the Club to a level where we could consistently compete. But in order to do that, you need to have players of that mentality and players that are top professionals 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
And that’s the biggest accolade that I can give to Kasper, is that on the pitch, he’s been immense for me, he’s made some big saves, he’s a big personality, he’s one of the top goalkeepers in Europe and off the pitch he’s been a real driving force in terms of this behaviour and this mentality and infrastructure that’s we’ve tried to create in order for us to be competitive.
Because if you don’t have that mentality, then it’s very difficult and on a personal level for me, he’s been outstanding. Coming into the Club, he’s been able to help me and support me with what we’re trying to do here, so overall he’s been absolutely amazing in my time here. I’m sure that every manager would say the same over the 10-year period.
With Kasper, he’s very ambitious, so he’s been a part of the journey here, he’s shown a great loyalty, but he wants to achieve and season on season he’s tried to do that. He’s always trying to set a standard for himself and for others to continually improve. He’s been promoted out of the lower levels, getting to the Premier League, winning the Premier League.
The beauty with Kasper is, he always wants more. That’s what I love about him. He doesn’t rest on winning the Premier League. He’s super hungry to continue achieving. He wants to play in the best competitions in Europe and he wants to win things. And when you have that mentality of player within the squad, then of course you know that you’re on the right path.
You also need many more like that and he sacrifices a lot in order to play to the level that he plays at. He’s a fantastic role model for a lot of players in terms of that mental preparation in order to be the best that you can be.
When you work with players at the very highest level of the game, that’s why they are there. There’s not a huge difference in terms of technical and tactical ability, but there’s a belief around top players and that comes from the base of preparing yourself, working hard and then when you work hard, that confidence comes.
And then sustaining that, and that’s what he does and that’s what the very best players do. With Kasper, it’s no surprise, because it’s that mentality that has taken him to the very top and it’s also the mentality of the very best players.
Jonny Evans – ‘He’s very driven to achieve’
I’ve been so impressed with him. There’s been so many different aspects that Kasper gives to the team. His technique and his shot-stopping, the way he kicks the ball, those were the things that really surprised me when I came here, how good he was and the standard that he was at.
Obviously, his leadership skills, going through a few tough times in the last few years and Kasper has dealt with all those fantastically well. He’s someone around the Club that always sets high standards, he’s a very driven person. He’s very driven to achieve and I think that raises the standards of everyone around him and he’s a great team-mate to have.
He’s constantly trying to improve the young lads’ standards. All the senior boys see how valuable he is and really appreciate his influence. There’s time when we’ve had our little arguments during a match amongst ourselves, but as soon as we see each other afterwards, we just laugh it off.
He’s always been very vocal on the pitch and it’s great for us because sometimes he sees things that we don’t or if the tempo is too slow, asking us to raise it. Little things like that, they always filter through to the rest of the players and he’s always someone who is willing to give that advice or that encouragement to everyone. It’s fantastic and we’re grateful for it.
Jamie Vardy – ‘He’s a world class goalkeeper’
His contribution has been massive over the years. I think that everyone knows he’s a world class goalkeeper, he’s made some really vital saves that we’ve needed at times. He even scored against Yeovil at home, which didn’t count as his goal unfortunately, but within the squad, everyone gave it him.
But that’s just Kasper, he probably gets annoyed at me quite a lot when he’ll make a world class save that’s got us the three points and then I’ll turn round and say: ‘Well that’s what you're paid to do’. On his performance level and how he is as a goalkeeper, he’s unbelievable.
He’s the biggest moaner ever! He loves a moan about the littlest things, but that’s just him! But you need that in the dressing room to keep the spirits up. He joins us now every week when we do little boxes the day before a game and he loves a whinge in there if someone has put him in the middle and he’s adamant that it was nothing to do with him.
You know you’re always going to need Kasper to be ready at all times. There’s games that he’s probably gone through where the opposition has barely had a shot, but we know full well in football that it only takes that one effort on target for it to end up in the back of the net. He’s always ready no matter what time in the game it is or which teams we’re playing against.