Manchester United are eyeing a move for Everton’s Jordan Pickford if their long-serving Spanish goalkeeper, David De Gea makes the switch to Real Madrid in the summer. De Gea has been on the Galacticos’ radar for some time now and club president, Florentino Perez might just be ready to finally make the Red Devils a sizeable offer and that will give United the financial leverage to meet Everton’s £50m asking price for Jordan.
Pickford arrived at Goodison Park last summer for £25m which turned him into the most expensive British shot-stopper in the history of the game. At just 23, Pickford has shown signs of a bright future for the England national team and is currently one of the best players in the Toffees lineup. The former Sunderland players talents has drawn the eyes of plenty and is quite deserved of a call-up to an elite side. Even though Everton are preparing for a future where they can match strides with Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City in the top four, they are a long way from doing so at least in the current season.
Even after spending monumental amounts in the last two transfer windows, they are yet to get a full return on their investments. Pickford was left clobbering behind a lacklustre defence as the Toffees well victim to a 5-1 thrashing to Arsenal last night. The youngster was quite visibly frustrated and this is a huge cause for concern amongst the Everton faithful. Holding down the talents of an ambitious player is always tough and if the bosses at Old Trafford does come in with a generous offer, it will be hard for Everton to keep their star goalkeeper.
Ever since Iker Casillas left the club back in 2014, fans at Santiago Bernabeu have seen a number of familiar faces get shifted around in the position over the years, but nobody could cement a permanent spot. The case is similar with current keepers, Keylor Navas and Kiko Casilla. Navas is the first choice under Zidane and is definitely a prolific talent, but the 31-year-old suffers from bouts of inconsistency.
Florentino Perez’s search for the perfect shot-stopper has not gone seamlessly either over the past year. Thibaut Courtois’ recent statements revealed that the Belgian is eager to stay with Chelsea and is very close to signing a new deal with the club. A move for Athletic Bilbao’s Kepa Arrizabalaga also fell through in later stages of the January window.
This is definitely a concern for the Galactico fans who are currently dealing with the team’s struggle in the La Liga. This season does not promise much in terms of trophies for the Los Blancos but the future can be secured by acquiring Spain’s number one shot-stopper. As hard as it may be to hold down the services of De Gea, Manchester United should waste any time in signing Pickford.
