Former Manchester United, Sheffield Wednesday and Preston defender working as a postman at the age of 32 | OneFootball

Once on the books of Manchester United, defender Marnick Vermijl has had quite a career path. In an interview with Het Nieuwsblad, the 32-year-old has revealed that alongside his time with third division side Thes Sport he is working as a local postman in Limburg. Having made his debut for Manchester United alongside Wayne Rooney, Vermijl clearly has fallen out of love with the professional game. The defender said ‘I had had enough of professional football. You are too dependent on the coach you have. Finding joy again was very important to me.‘ Clearly, his new role brings him some joy; ‘As a postman I have to get up at four every day, but now I am home around noon and can pick up the children from school. That is a luxury’.

Vermijl has been playing in the lower reaches of Belgian football since 2020 when he joined Thes from MVV Maastricht in the Dutch second tier. This season he has played 10 games already. The defender was highly rated as a teenager, being capped at multiple youth levels by the Red Devils and ultimately joining Manchester United. He only made two appearances for the side, both in the League Cup before moving on. During his time in Manchester he also spent a year with NEC Nijmegen on loan, playing 34 times in the Eredivisie.

He then spent time with Preston, where he played 54 games, scoring five times. Vermijl also had a spell with Sheffield Wednesday and Scunthorpe. Since joining Thes Sport he has played 100 times for the side. While he may not have lived up to the expectations as a teenager, this is still a respectable career at a very good level of football.

GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson – Author of The Africa Cup of Nations: The History of an Underappreciated Tournament