One of the worst kept secrets is now out in the public domain and it’s no surprise to discover that Edwin van der Sar will be hanging up his goalkeeping gloves when the current football season comes to an end.

The Dutchman has had a glittering career which has included winning the Champions League with Manchester United three seasons ago, although he has recently turned 40 and Sir Alex Ferguson will now set his attention on developing a permanent replacement to van der Sar.

Sir Alex Ferguson said: “I have come to accept this will be Edwin’s last season. It’s sad but the difficulty for a goalkeeper when he gets to 40 is something which happened with Peter Shilton. All of a sudden, because of age, Shilton’s form just collapsed and I don’t think Edwin would want that. He is such a proud man and it’s going to be a big loss.”

Van der Sar started his playing career at Ajax, playing 226 times over 11 seasons before joining Juventus and playing in Italy for two seasons. However, he was snapped up by Fulham for £5 million and enjoyed four excellent seasons at Craven Cottage before signing for United.