Balague Blasts: “De Gea Is Not Just Good. He Is Extraordinary”

On 29 June this summer a young Spanish goalkeeper by the name of David De Gea was signed by Manchester United for £18m.

The 20-year-old had a successful season for his hometown side Atletico Madrid but had only just cemented his place in their side. That is why it came as a surprise that Sir Alex Ferguson and his goalkeeping coach – Eric Steele – chose De Gea to replace the retired Edwin Van der Sar.

Replacing a world class shot-stopper in the shape of Van der Sar is a hard task to follow even for mature keepers such as Gianluigi Buffon and Pepe Reina. Both players were in the running to replace Van der Sar along with Hugo Lloris, Manuel Neuer and Maarten Stekelenburg.

Neuer and Stekelenburg both moved clubs this summer after speculation that they could be transferred to Old Trafford, joining Bayern Munich and Roma respectively.

The uncertainty of the signing has risen due to De Gea’s early appearances in goal for United. The Spaniard allowed Edin Dzeko to score from 30-yards and then let a tame Shane Long shot roll under his body in United’s opening Premier League fixture against West Brom. Luckily enough for De Gea, United were able to win both games due to late goals.

He did play marginally better against Tottenham on Monday but still flapped at a couple of shots and crosses. De Gea’s best asset seems to be his distribution, highlighted with a long throw that allowed United to counter-attack for their second goal.

Spanish Journalist Guillem Balague has called on the British media to stop criticising the keeper after only a handful of games. He said on his official twitter site: “People doubting David De Gea? Seriously? It will be a feast of eaten words at the end of the season. De Gea is not just good. He is extraordinary.”

The 20-year-old’s talent is unquestionable, but Ferguson and Manchester United fans will have to be extremely patient before he turns into a world class goalkeeper. With only Anders Lindegaard challenging, De Gea may have time to cement his place in United’s new-look team.

Submitted by Football Friends