- Spanish shot-stopper's deal running down
- Has been at Old Trafford since 2011
- Linked with alternative options
WHAT HAPPENED? While De Gea has been a stalwart for the Red Devils following his arrival in 2011, breaking the club’s all-time clean sheet record this season, questions are being asked of his future. No fresh terms have been agreed with the Spanish shot-stopper as yet, meaning that free agency could beckon, and United are being linked with various alternative options to fill their No.1 berth – including Juventus’ former Arsenal star Szczesny.
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WHAT THEY SAID: Former United defender Parker, who won two Premier League titles during his time at Old Trafford, believes the Red Devils should stick with what they know, telling bettors: “David De Gea is a top-class goalkeeper and I don’t see any reason why Man United would want to replace him at this moment in time. I definitely think that the club should take advantage of the option they have to extend his contract for a further year. I don´t know if I would give him a new contract right now but he has earned the right to be given at least one more year as the first choice to prove himself and if he continues performing so well he can get his contract extension. To me, De Gea is one of the best goalkeepers in the world even though people are talking badly about his distribution but that’s not important. Look at how many mistakes Allison and Ederson have made this season but it seems like it doesn’t matter because they are good at passing the ball. But let me put it this way… Try to put [Raphael] Varane or [Christian] Eriksen in the goal, then Man United would have the best distributor of all teams but how many saves would they make? The important thing is to make saves and the ancient phrase `if you’re in doubt, kick it out´ still stands for goalkeepers in my opinion. And there is no way they should just get rid of him. They can’t do that. Sentiment shouldn´t be a deciding factor but in his case, I think it should play a role as he has been here for a lot of years and even won a Premier League under Sir Alex Ferguson.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Parker went on to say of the links to a Poland international that boasts prior experience of life in England: “Wojciech Szczesny has been mentioned and he was never a great goalkeeper at Arsenal but he decided to move to Juventus to put something on his CV. He is not a player that could improve Man United and he is definitely not better than David De Gea. Right now De Gea doesn’t have anyone pushing him as Tom Heaton and Jack Butland always are going to accept to sit on the bench, which is weird but that’s how goalkeepers are even though it is strange. So, I can understand why they are considering bringing a goalkeeper in but if the club decides to do that it needs to be a younger goalkeeper who can take over from De Gea when the time is right.”
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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GettyWHAT NEXT? De Gea has taken in 534 appearances for United – claiming Premier League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup and Europa League honours along the way – and has expressed a desire to remain at Old Trafford for the foreseeable future as he is still just 32 years of age.
