Recent reports from The Mirror suggest that Spanish shot-stopper David de Gea is set to leave Manchester United at the end of this season as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has put his faith in Dean Henderson as the club’s new number 1.
The report further states that the Spaniard, who is on £350,000-a-week with two years still left on his contract, might bag a huge chunk of his £36.5 million contract if he leaves this summer. Furthermore, what makes the deal more complicated is the fact that United have put a £50 million price tag on the player. Given the pandemic situation, it’s doubtful if any of the potential suitors would be willing to spend such a lump-sum amount of money on a 30-year-old goalkeeper.
The End Of An Era
There’s no doubt about the fact that the Spanish shot-stopper has been one of his side’s best performers over the past decade; however, some of his individual errors in between the sticks this season have paved the way for Dean Henderson to put up a strong challenge for the number one role.
With eleven shutouts in nineteen matches this term, the fans strongly believe that the Englishman deserves to start games week in week out. Moreover, given de Gea’s humongous wages, his departure will provide the board with a major financial boost, with Lee Grant and Joel Pereira also set to become free agents at the end of this season.
“I think it’s Henderson now. I think he’s taken over.” – Paul Scholes told BT Sport on the battle to fill the Red Devils’ number one spot.
“I thought David had been lucky after the Everton game to keep his place. He made a couple of mistakes where he could’ve done better.”
“Not glaringly obvious mistakes, but I just feel a bit more confident with Henderson there. It seems a little bit more relaxed.”
In June last year, Solskjaer stated that Dean Henderson is destined to become United’s next number one, and finally, it seems like the time has come. Despite looking shaky at times, he has done enough to earn himself a place in the starting eleven. At 23, the England international will develop with each passing game and given his sky-high potential; it seems as if the Norwegian coach has done the right thing by giving him the number one spot. Perhaps, a change in goal seems to be the way forward.
