Man Utd superstar under serious threat with impending arrival another sign Ten Hag will make ruthless call
An impending arrival is another sign a Man Utd superstar’s future lays away from Old Trafford despite Erik ten Hag recently branding him “magnificent”.
If the first three months of the new campaign are anything to go by, Manchester United struck gold when appointing Erik ten Hag.
The Dutchman has had a transformative effect on a club that for the longest time, seemed to be their own worst enemy.
The club’s recruitment drive in the summer that totalled north of £200m is already paying off. Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro and Christian Eriksen in particular have made huge impacts and are laying the foundation for those around them to thrive.
Ten Hag has a squad of players previously criticised for not giving their all scrapping for their lives each and every week. What’s more, the former Ajax boss has shown he’ll not shy away from the big decisions.
His handling of the Cristiano Ronaldo debacle has earned the respect and admiration of the squad at large. Ten Hag may need to show his leadership abilities again in 2023 when the future of David de Gea comes under the microscope.
Ten Hag is known to favour a more mobile goalkeeper who excels with the ball at feet.
The United boss wants his team to dominate possession, though doing so will eventually require a goalkeeper who can retain and recycle possession under pressure, as Alisson and Ederson do for Liverpool and Man City, for example.
De Gea has never been known for what he does with his feet, and Ten Hag’s problem will come from the fact De Gea is still an elite-level operator with his hands.
However, according to the Manchester Evening News, United are preparing for an appointment that could signal the beginning of the end for De Gea.
New appointment another bad sign for De Gea?
They report Man Utd are ‘in the process of hiring a goalkeeper recruitment analyst’. Once appointed, the new face will be tasked with identifying ‘potential first-team targets.’
Of course, that could refer to the back-ups to De Gea. Dean Henderson fares little better with his feet than De Gea and his explosive interview upon joining Nottingham Forest on loan suggests he doesn’t have a future in Manchester.
Martin Dubravka is only a short-term fix while on loan from Newcastle. Tom Heaton – who makes the bench more than Dubravka – is 36.
However, the Athletic are just one of a handful of outlets who have reported United are sizing up new starting goalkeepers in the market, not back-ups. They claimed FC Porto’s Diogo Costa and Athletic Bilbao’s Unai Simon are in their sights.
De Gea’s current contract expires next summer, though the club do have an option for an extra 12 months. The MEN report a decision on whether it’ll be triggered will be made before the end of January.
Man Utd could swing axe in 2023
The Athletic suggested that if De Gea doesn’t sign a longer-term deal before then, United won’t activate the one-year option.
The reasoning there stems from believing De Gea has little re-sale value in the market given he’s 31 and earns around £375,000-a-week. Very few teams can afford to bring De Gea in – even if they wanted to. If Ten Hag determines De Gea isn’t the long-term option, there’s little sense in delaying the inevitable.
Ten Hag recently labelled De Gea “magnificent” following a sparkling display against West Ham on Sunday.
However, he’s already shown he’s unafraid to make ruthless calls for the betterment of the club, such as axing Ronaldo from the majority of his starting elevens.
The appointment of a new goalkeeping recruitment analyst would suggest United are at least seriously considering moving De Gea on.
