Opinion: De Gea deserves place among the greats

Literally, when taking over from Edwin van der Sar, a giant of the game in every respect and a man who remains very much in our thoughts after falling seriously ill on Friday.

In his last season, 2010/11, the Dutchman had helped United win the Premier League title yet again and he was to retire after the Champions League final against Barcelona. He may have been unable to emulate another of our all-time great goalkeepers in Peter Schmeichel, by bowing out with that trophy in his hands, but replacing van der Sar was still a tall order, for anybody.

Sir Alex Ferguson and goalkeeping coach Eric Steele scoured the globe for a suitable replacement before settling on a 20-year-old from Spain, who had forced his way into the Atletico Madrid side at a young age, showing commendable maturity in La Liga.

Such a raw, youthful and wiry recruit was always going to be an easy target for the ever-critical British media and so it proved from the outset. There was no hiding place, any marginal error in judgement was touted as proof this move had come too soon for him, and he was inevitably given a rough ride.

Sir Alex opted to take him out of the firing line, rotating the Spaniard with Anders Lindegaard. However, after a costly 3-2 home defeat on the manager’s birthday, to Blackburn Rovers, David missed four successive league games and was not even on the bench for the win over Stoke City, with Ben Amos wearing the goalkeeper's gloves and Tomasz Kuszczak named among the substitutes.

De Gea missed the thrilling 3-2 victory at Manchester City in the FA Cup but he returned for the defeat at Liverpool in the following round. However, as we hit February in that first season, everything changed for David in a game at Chelsea, marking a significant turning point in his career.

Ironically, it was a save to deny Juan Mata, who would become a team-mate and one of his closest friends, that forced a sharp rethink for anybody deciding De Gea was not up to the task. The Blues midfielder’s free-kick was soaring towards the top corner of the net, threatening to inflict a cruel defeat on United who had battled back from 3-0 down to draw level at 3-3.

A flash of green followed to leave everybody incredulous. It was one of those stops that prevented what seemed an absolute certain goal. It was world class. Little wonder you, the fans, voted it our greatest save of the Premier League era.

The manager's bold choice was to be vindicated as De Gea kept his place in the side for the remainder of the season. There would be no further doubts, he was the club’s no.1. It would be fair to say he never looked back, earning a Premier League winner’s medal in the following campaign and earning a spot in the PFA Team of the Season for the first of five times he has managed to earn such a plaudit from his peers.

Sir Alex’s retirement marked the end of the most glorious of eras for the club and there was always going to be a period of transition. One man who remained constant, through all the changes, was De Gea. Four Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year awards in five seasons tells you everything you need to know about how influential, how utterly vital, he was to Manchester United in this period.

Some of his performances defied belief – the astounding display at Arsenal in late 2017, registering a joint-record 14 saves, will go down in history as one of the finest by any United keeper. More silverware was secured, including the Carabao Cup as recently as last season, as he kept a clean sheet in the win over Newcastle United at Wembley.

It will have given David more satisfaction than any of the individual accolades: he has always been insistent that team trophies matter most to him. And anybody who has met the affable man from Madrid would tell you that this is totally in keeping with his character.

David is one of those nice guys who always has time for you; for a handshake, a smile and a quick chat. You will see by the reaction to his departure that he is going to be sorely missed by those in and around the club.

Our last playing link to Sir Alex's time and a proper Manchester United footballer.

Yet while there is inevitable sadness at the news, his legacy is forever intact. Perhaps aptly, in what turned out to be his final United appearance at Old Trafford, he saved a penalty to prevent Fulham from taking a 2-0 lead and we ended up winning the game.

The fans had their chance to show their appreciation at the ground when he showed off the Golden Glove award for keeping the most clean sheets in the 2022/23 Premier League. No overseas player has made more than his 545 appearances for United in all of the long and storied history of this magnificent club.

He is seventh on the all-time chart, and has kept more clean sheets than any of the keepers who came before him. Schmeichel, van der Sar and, let’s not forget, Alex Stepney. The fact he will always be discussed in that company, very much in the debate about the Reds’ greatest-ever goalkeeper is testament to how that callow custodian we signed in 2011 turned out.

Thank for you for everything, David. For your service, dedication, humility, personality and that amazing agility. Some of the saves had to be seen to be believed. It was a privilege watching you keep goal for United.

The opinions in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of Manchester United Football Club.