Could be controversial for some and understandably so. De Gea is a club legend and been a fantastic player for the club, he’s our highest base salary earner and looking at contributions from each ,ember of the squad over their United career he deserves that.
I think summer could be right time to sell based on both on and off the pitch reasons
De Gea will be 30 next season (not old for a goalkeeper I know). However we will need to start thinking about a replacement in the next few years regardless. What is a real possibility is that Dean Henderson leaves permanently in that time and we’ve missed out on a credible next Number 1 and would them have to pay a fee for a replacement, likely £70m+ after Man Utd Tax is added on and that seems the rate for Top Goalkeepers now.
De Gea is still fantastic but errors have slipped into his game, what we have seen is with the improved defenders in front of him, he hasn’t had to pull the 10+ save games to keep us in games for a long time now. I’m not suggesting Henderson is as good a goalkeeper as De Gea, just that Henderson being in goal wouldn’t be an issue.
It’s possible I think to the right club (Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, PSG, Bayern) to command maybe £60m for De Gea still, this value will obviously drop rapidly every year 30+ years of age. Added to the fact that Dean Henderson as a replacement would cost £0. Would also be replacing a Goalkeeper earning £375,000 base salary a week with one currently on £25,000, however I’d assume he’d get an improved contract taking him to around £75,000.. thats £15,600,000 off the wage bill.
I don’t really want De Gea to leave as he’s been brilliant for United over the past 9 years, everyone has a right time though
Positives to replacing De Gea with Henderson in Summer 2020
- £60m Transfer Fee in / £0m Transfer Fee Out: Net Spend -£60m
- De Gea Leaving is say 3 years £20m Transfer Fee in / £70m Tansfer Fee Out for Replacement: Net Spend £50m (Figures estimates based on Man Utd Tax, Inflation of Transfer Fees and Fees for other Top Goalkeepers recently)
- Premier League Proven Goalkeeper as replacement
- £15,600,000 a year off the wage bill (We disgustingly have the highest wage bill in the league and that has to be addressed)
- Henderson registered as a home grown player
- United have a good core of English players so the over chemistry in the background could improve (not implying De Gea has any issues there at all) but would have a core of club and international team mates
- Replaced an ageing Goalkeeper with a younger one
- If Henderson flopped we can buy a new goal keeper the summer or 2 after, we’d have had to spend money replacing De Gea if we kept him any way
Negatives to replacing De Gea with Henderson in Summer 2020
- Henderson not proven at a club with pressure and scrutiny of Man Utd
- Drop in ability between Goalkeepers (who knows if that proves a significant drop)
- Would be saying goodbye to a Club Legend