After Manchester United and Newcastle drew in October, David de Gea was the first player to leave the locker room.
After the game, a beaming De Gea spoke to MUTV and struggled to contain his excitement as he tried to explain what it meant to make his 500th appearance for the club—an accomplishment that took him more than 11 years to obtain.
De Gea said: “I think it’s something crazy.” De Gea had just became the 11th player in United history to reach the milestone. Naturally, it’s incredibly significant for me to have played 500 games for this club, but I think I’ll appreciate it more after I finish playing football.
When I finally stop playing, I’ll be able to say, “OK, I played more than 500 games for a big club like United. To be honest, I’m incredibly proud and it’s great. It’s a dream to be here because it’s really difficult to get here and huge just to be a part of this group.
De Gea joined the list of players who have made 500 appearances for the club, joining names like Denis Irwin, Wayne Rooney, Gary Neville, Sir Bobby Charlton, Paul Scholes, and Ryan Giggs. He certainly deserved a glass of wine that evening.
Many people thought the Spaniard lacked the skills to flourish in the Premier League when he moved from Atletico Madrid to Manchester in 2011 for £18.9 million, but that transfer fee has turned out to be excellent value for money.
De Gea has been a great asset to Manchester United and can truly claim to have been the finest goalkeeper in the world for at least three years, regardless of their profession or line of work.
Every good thing must ultimately come to an end, and in De Gea’s case, it appears as though he has already played his final match for the club, with details of an extension still being negotiated.
De Gea’s contract expires at the end of the month, and while it was formerly believed that his deal would be extended on less favorable conditions, it is now known that things are not as promising as they once were.
During his first season in charge, Erik ten Hag has consistently protected the 32-year-old, but parts of his goalkeeping fell apart in the latter part of the season, raising concerns about the goalkeeper’s future.
For De Gea, this season has been peculiar. The goalkeeper kept the most clean sheets in the league and made some fantastic, game-changing saves, but his inability to handle the ball at his feet and costly mistakes have been inexcusable.
When he made blunders in the FA Cup final against Manchester City and West Ham, it raised more questions about his preparedness for the rebuild after his disastrous performance against Sevilla.
De Gea was long ago excluded from Spain’s national squad because to his subpar kicking. He lacks power, is unable to handle things from the shadows, invites the opposition to press, and has significantly lagged behind his contemporaries in important fields.
He and Hugo Lloris each had four mistakes that resulted in goals this season, which was the most in the Premier League. Another deteriorating goalie is Lloris, who will be replaced by Tottenham this summer.
De Gea, a goalie stuck in the past, was given an extension that made no sense, and if this is his final game for the club, that will eventually help the team’s chances for the upcoming season.
The choice to part ways with De Gea was definitely the right one, but the goalkeeper can still walk away from the club with pride after a season that was overwhelmingly successful for the team, in which a trophy was won and development was achieved.
Ten Hag has made a fantastic start to his renovation, and the signing of an extension by De Gea would have put a cap on what could be accomplished. Although he can’t help the team advance, he will still be regarded as a true great.
