Manchester United: PSG linked with move for David De Gea
By Cay North
The David De Gea to Real Madrid rumors have cooled off a bit, but they may be replaced with talk of a Paris Saint-Germain transfer.
Of all the transfer sagas in recent years, the one involving David De Gea is one of the longest. It seems to come back at every window, but there may be a new turn in it. While Real Madrid is usually the club involved with the rumors, another one is linked with a move for the Spanish goalkeeper this time.
Le10 Sport, a French outlet, was the one to initially report the rumor. They’ve reported that Antero Henrique, PSG’s director, has already asked agent Jorge Mendes about a move. His current value is reported as $40,000,000 according to Transfermarkt, but with the recent trend of inflation in the market, the deal would almost certainly be for a higher amount.
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In fact, inflation and high transfer fees may be the reason why PSG is targeting De Gea in the first place. According to the reports, they are interested in Atletico Madrid keeper Jan Oblak but aren’t willing to pay the $100,000,000 release clause on his contract.
Both keepers are generally considered to be world-class, but if PSG does decide to break the bank for someone at that position, De Gea looks like the more realistic target. Unlike Oblak, De Gea can make a solid case for being the best player at his club, and he’s carried them through some matches while having less help from a top defense than Oblak.
At 26 years old, De Gea has already made 279 appearances for Manchester United, keeping 103 clean sheets. Additionally, he’s become the top choice in goal for his national team, appearing 23 times with Spain. He’s been in the Premier League Team of the Season for three years running, and also was the fans’ Player of the Season in the 2013-14, 2014-15, and 2015-16 seasons.
As such a key member of Manchester United’s squad, it’s hard to see them selling him without a significant offer. PSG will have to be more willing to spend than Real Madrid, who chased De Gea for years and never made a deal.
Backup keeper Sergio Romero played a role in United’s Europa League title run last season, but rarely plays in the Premier League. If United did move on from De Gea, they would have to replace him with another top class keeper immediately. There’s only so many players with De Gea’s skill level, and United has rejected expensive deals in the past for that very reason.
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PSG has defied the odds on other transfers, however, and it doesn’t look like this transfer saga will end anytime soon. When they want a player, they usually manage to get them, so it will be interesting to see how that affects United’s past policy of valuing De Gea’s skill over the money from a transfer.