Manchester United manager would have been pleased to see his side going into the international break in the top four following two successive home wins. What he wouldn’t be too pleased about is the rumours surrounding David De Gea in the past few days. The 23-year-old Spanish shot-stopper has apparently been lined up by Real Madrid as a replacement for Iker Casillas.
De Gea looks set to replace Casillas at the national set-up and Real Madrid are looking to do the same as well, even though they just bought Keylor Navas over the summer. if the Spaniard does move to Madrid, the place of his birth, it would certainly be a big blow for the Red Devils.
Here are three reasons why the Red Devils must not sell David De Gea to Real Madrid.
Would send out the wrong message
The 2014 summer transfer window saw Manchester United break not just the British transfer record, but also the record for the most money spent in a single transfer window. There were plenty of big-name arrivals at Old Trafford and some of them, like Angel Di Maria, are already off to a great start.
So if the Red Devils were to sell the Spaniard, who has arguably been one of their most consistent performers over the past couple of seasons, it would send out the wrong message about the club’s ambitions. While it is true that the club are unlikely to continue their astronomic spending from the summer of 2014, they aren’t currently in a position where they need to sell, in order to buy players. And the sale of De Gea would mean that the club wants to simply stockpile attacking talent, while completely neglecting the defence and that is not the image that Van Gaal would want the club to have.
Lack of a suitable replacement
While it is true that it would be difficult for the club to refuse the sale of the Spaniard should the reigning European Champions come out with an astronomical sum of money, the simple fact is that the Red Devils don’t have a suitable replacement, should De Gea decide to leave Old Trafford. And when you sell a player, especially a goalkeeper, the one thing you must always do, is to ensure that you have a replacement lined up.
As of right now, should De Gea leave, United will be left with no one and that is something that would hinder their hopes in the long run. If there is one thing that you need, to be competitive at the highest level, it is a world class goalkeeper. As Arsenal have shown time and again in the recent past, if you don’t have a keeper who is solid, resolute and can remain concentrated for long stretches of time, then you can certainly forget about any aspirations you might have of winning the League.
He is still only 23
When Manchester United smashed the British transfer record for a goalkeeper to sign David De Gea in the summer of 2011, there were question marks raised. And on the evidence of his performance in the 2011/12 season, there were those who questioned whether he was a good buy at all. But after a rough start at United, De Gea has grown in leaps and bounds in the past couple of seasons.
From being a keeper, who was easily beaten from long range and could be bullied from set pieces, the Spanish shot-stopper has transformed into one of the best keepers in not just England, but Europe as well. All this and he is still only 23. Given how goalkeepers generally tend to mature later and have longer careers, the Spaniard could well be the side’s first-choice keeper for at least another record. And the club would be foolish to let the Spaniard go, particularly at a stage when he seems to have established himself in the side. If the club are indeed looking for a return on their invested, it would probably take a lot more than £25m for the club to part ways with their No.1
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