De Gea U-Turn Shows Ten Hag Is Truly In Charge At United
With the true future of Manchester United still up in the air – well, the ownership status of the club at least – on face value it seems that the off pitch situation, may well unfortunately be leaking into manager Erik ten Hag’s plans for further improvement in the coming 2023/24 campaign – given it has now been reported that the Red Devil’s have, in fact, fully u-turned on goalkeeper David de Gea’s new contract deal.
Earlier this month it was reported by the Daily Mail that the framework for a new deal, which was designed to reduce the 32 year old Spaniard’s claimed £375,000 a week wage, had been agreed in principle and last Tuesday reports claimed that the deal was over the line and that the player had now put pen to paper on it. However, on Wednesday the Mail were now reporting that instead of the deal being signed, United took it off the table and replaced it with a deal that contained an even lower offer than was agreed in principle during negotiations.
Ultimately, it means de Gea’s contract will run down at the end of the month, but rather than it being anything to do with the off pitch uncertainty, it seems the u-turn was at the behest of ten Hag as he remains unsure on the player, and would instead prefer to source a new number one for the club.
The goalkeepers future is now seriously in doubt as there are basically hours left on his existing contract in reality, and such a u-turn at this late stage probably means it is very unlikely he will sign the new amended deal that has been placed on the table, as although he may not be able to command a wage in the same ballpark at another club, there is also the signing on fee to factor in as he will be a free agent.
With that said, given the influx of established players to Saudi Arabia’s Pro League this summer, if he does bring the curtain down on 12 years at Old Trafford, he could well decide to cash in and make a move like that.
It could be an interesting couple of days.
Image from: unsplash.com
