The World Cup is fast approaching, but one Manchester United player who won’t be travelling to Qatar is goalkeeper David de Gea.
The four-times Sir Matt Busby player of the year winner has not even been named in Luis Enrique’s provisional 55-man squad for the tournament, with three other Premier League goalkeepers chosen ahead of him.
According to AS, “The three goalkeepers who will go to Qatar will be Unai Simón, Robert Sánchez and David Raya.
“But Luis Enrique has also included Kepa Arrizabalaga, who has recovered his best form at Chelsea. David Soria, from Getafe, is the fifth man. But the last two are only options in the case of injury or illness of the first three.”
The fact that De Gea is considered at best sixth most qualified is disappointing for the former Atletico Madrid man after another superb season last time around.
Some argue that this reflects the reality of a player who is not compatible with the modern game, but who because of his immense past achievements for United still commands huge loyalty and belief from a large contingent of the United faithful.
Others argue that De Gea is head and shoulders above many of those picked ahead of him, but is being punished for high-profile errors when wearing his country’s colours in the past.
Meanwhile it has still not been revealed whether United’s on-loan keeper Dean Henderson is part of Gareth Southgate’s provisional England squad.
The Mail notes that Henderson “was in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the Nations League matches last month, but that was with Jordan Pickford out injured so he is realistically competing with Aaron Ramsdale and Nick Pope for one of the goalkeeping spots in Qatar.”
Loan manager Steve Cooper insists that Southgate should pick the 25 year old, saying “he’s given himself the best chance, for sure.
“Dean is working incredibly hard, he’s got a real growth mind-set to improve and it’s not just the stuff he does on the pitch.”
United are yet to make a decision on either player’s future, with De Gea free to negotiate with foreign clubs and sign a pre-contract agreement come January, when his contract enters its last six months.
Henderson was seen as his natural successor and briefly won the number one slot but outspoken comments about his treatment by the club will have done little to help his cause.
The Red Devils are being heavily linked with FC Porto’s Diogo Costa, which could mean that neither De Gea nor Henderson will be wearing United’s colours next season.
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