It appeared David De Gea was going to sign a new contract at Manchester United this summer but things changed dramatically in recent weeks.
Rumours emerged of the original deal being offered to the Spanish goalkeeper had been withdrawn by the club and a new contract offered at significantly lower wagers.
I just wanted to send this farewell message to all Manchester United supporters.
I would like to express my unwavering gratitude and appreciation for the love from the last 12 years. We’ve achieved a lot since my dear Sir Alex Ferguson brought me to this club. I took incredible… pic.twitter.com/6R7ezOEf1E
The news that Andre Onana was being targeted by Manchester United may also have led to the decision for De Gea to leave Old Trafford on a free transfer.
How does De Gea rate in terms of the all time great goalkeepers in the Premier League?
Unfortunately for De Gea, he was at Manchester United during a period of huge instability.
The only Premier League title won by De Gea during his 12 years in Manchester was in the 2012/13 campaign, which was the last under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson.
De Gea won the FA Cup once, two League Cups, and the Europa League but his trophy haul does not come close to that of Peter Schmeichel, who won the Premier League five times plus the Champions League.
Ederson, the current goalkeeper of Manchester City also has five Premier League winners’ medals and a Champions League to his name.
So, in terms of trophies, De Gea cannot compete with Schmeichel and Ederson.
However, De Gea cannot be blamed for what has happened at Manchester United over the last decade and as an individual performer, he has been excellent for much of his time at Old Trafford.
Only three other goalkeepers have kept more clean sheets than De Gea in Premier League history. De Gea is second only to Petr Cech for the number of clean sheets at one club in the Premier League.
Only three goalkeepers have a better save ratio in the Premier League since De Gea made his debut for Manchester United and he finishes on 72%.
Only six goalkeepers have won the Premier League Golden Glove award more than once and one of those keepers is De Gea.
He first won the award in 2017/18 and won it for a second time at the end of the 2022/23 season.
At Manchester United, De Gea’s performances were always appreciated and he won the player of the season award four times, which is incredible for a goalkeeper.
The only player that can match De Gea is Cristiano Ronaldo. No other player has more than two player of the year awards at Manchester United.
In terms of total clean sheets when compared to Edwin van der Sar and Schmeichel, De Gea tops them both with 147 clean sheets.
Van der Sar has 132 clean sheets, while Schmeichel has 128 clean sheets, some of which were for other clubs while De Gea’s were all for Manchester United.
De Gea may not have won many big trophies during his time at Manchester United but he is one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League era.
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