DAVID SEAMAN REMEMBERS ‘GREAT FRIEND’ ALEX MANNINGER FOLLOWING HIS DEATH AGED 48

David Seaman said his “great friend” and former team-mate Alex Manninger will be remembered as a “massive player” in Arsenal’s history following his death at the age of 48.

Manninger, who made 64 appearances during five years at Arsenal and played a key role in helping the Gunners win both the Premier League and FA Cup in 1998, died in a road accident near Salzburg on Thursday morning.

According to reports in Austria, Manninger’s car was in a collision with a train on a level crossing on the Salzburg local railway in Nussdorf am Haunsberg.

Manninger, capped 33 times by Austria, was largely Seaman’s understudy at Arsenal.

But he deputised for the former England number one late in the 1997/98 campaign and delivered a string of impressive performances to help Arsenal – in Arsene Wenger’s first full season in charge – win the double.

“It is devastating news,” Seaman, 62, told the Press Association. “It is really sad and it is difficult to get your head around it.

“When I think of Alex Manninger, he was a fantastic goalkeeper for us. He came in and deputised for me during a really critical time to help us win the double.

“He did amazingly well. He was just a young lad when he broke into the first team. For a 20-year-old to come in and play for Arsenal in the way that he did was really special.

“I was out for quite a few games through injury. He played 13 times, kept a clean sheet in the key 1-0 league win against Manchester United at Old Trafford and saved penalties in our (quarter-final) FA Cup win against West Ham.

“The fans loved him. And I must admit it was touch and go as to whether I would get back in the side. He was a massive player for Arsenal.”

Manninger, who began his career with RB Salzburg and joined the Gunners in a £500,000 move from Grazer AK in June 1997, left Arsenal for Espanyol in 2002.

He also had spells in Italy with Torino, Bologna, Siena and Juventus – with whom he collected a Serie A winner’s medal – and joined Liverpool on a short-term deal in 2016 but did not make a competitive appearance for the Reds.

Seaman, who won three league titles and four FA Cups at Arsenal, added: “When you looked at him, he was very athletic, had a great spring and made great saves.

“He was so competitive in the standards that he set himself. He wanted to be the best and if he let a goal in, he wouldn’t shut up about it. He never stopped analysing the goals he let in because of how good he wanted to be.

“He was a great friend, too. And like me was a fisherman and we spent may hours together on the lakes. My thoughts are with his wife and young family.”

Arsenal paid tribute to their former player, writing on X: “Everyone at Arsenal is shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic passing of former goalkeeper, Alex Manninger. Rest in peace, Alex.”

A post on Liverpool’s X account read: “Liverpool FC is deeply saddened by the passing of former goalkeeper Alex Manninger at the age of 48.

“The thoughts of everyone at LFC are with Alex’s family and friends at this difficult time.”

Juventus remembered “a man of rare values”.

They said on X: “Today is a very sad day. We have lost not only a great athlete, but a man of rare values: humility, dedication and an exceptional sense of professionalism.

“Alex Manninger will be remembered for the example he set, on and off the pitch.

“Juventus expresses its deepest condolences on the passing of Alex Manninger and stands close to his family in this moment of grief.”

Manninger’s former Juventus team-mate, Italy great Gianluigi Buffon, paid a moving tribute on his Instagram account, writing: “Every word is superfluous. Every tear would be just another for the loss of a friend and someone I’ve always admired.

“You chose to remain independent from the addiction of the world of football, seeking your happiness in the simple things: a healthy life in the woods, fishing, nature, family. This was your credo.

“In a world often bowed and genuflected, chasing oppression, careerism, and easy money, you always asserted your freedom, maintaining an upright posture, with the pride of someone who knows what you want.

“You had the strength to distance yourself from all this and look at us with that sly smile of yours, as if to say: ‘You’re all crazy, you’ll never have me’.

“I hope, indeed, I’m certain, that from up there you will continue to guide your beautiful children and your young wife.”