David De Gea is now officially out of contract at Manchester United after his deal came to an end on June 30, so the Spanish international could join another club on a free transfer. The Red Devils are still in talks over a new deal, but there’s a feeling an agreement might not be reached.
The 32-year-old isn’t happy with the way he’s been treated by United amid rumours he was offered a paycut and had the deal taken off the table for a bigger paycut despite accepting the previous contract, so Erik ten Hag might have to consider signing his replacement.
According to Dutch outlet 1908 (h/t Sport Witness), that successor might be Justin Bijlow. The 25-year-old rose through the youth ranks to Feyenoord’s first-team in 2016 and has gone on to make 119 appearances in all competitions, conceding 128 goals with 45 clean sheets.
Bijlow is a regular for Feyenoord, keeping 15 clean sheets from 34 games last season, so it’s easy to see why United want him. De club aan de Maas have no intention of letting him leave, however, as he’s a key player with two years remaining on his deal, so time will tell if the Red Devils make a breakthrough in negotiations.
It doesn’t appear an offer hasn’t been lodged yet, and Bijlow has a market value of €15m (£13m), but he’s worth more than that to Feyenoord.
Ten Hag has other alternatives on his wish list – Andre Onana of Inter Milan and Mike Maignan of AC Milan – but all depends on what happens to De Gea. United understandably wanted to bring his wages down from £375k-per-week and the Spanish international agreed to the terms, but the club never completed the paperwork.
Man United returned to the table with an offer even lower than the original, so De Gea felt disrespected and betrayed. Ten Hag has been lining up a host of names that could take his place next season too.
