De Gea officially announced via social media on Saturday that he had agreed with Manchester United to end his 12-year career with the Reds after his contract expired. He will choose a new team on a free transfer, and an invitation has been issued to the Saudi Premier League. British media revealed that Manchester United team-mates were shocked by the way he left. The Manchester Evening News summed it up best: Manchester United's decision may have been the right one, but it was made the wrong way.
In his farewell declaration, De Gea wrote: "I would like to bid farewell to all Manchester United fans and express my unwavering gratitude and praise for the pampering of the past 12 years. We have achieved a lot since the dear Fergus brought me to the club. Every time I wear this shirt, lead the team, represent the biggest club in the world, an honour that belongs to only one of the lucky few, I feel incredibly proud. I have had an unforgettable and successful time here. Leaving Madrid before I was 20 years old, I didn't expect to achieve what we won together. Now, it's time to take on new challenges and push yourself again in a new environment. Manchester United will always be in my heart, Manchester United shaped me and I will never forget. We can all see it."
Manchester United boss Ten Hag praised David De Gea: "To play a game for Manchester United requires a high level of quality and character. 545 appearances in 12 years is a special achievement, especially in the goalkeeper position, where you are the focus of every game. The four-time winner of Player of the Year by fans and teammates shows his level of performance and he will always be remembered by fans as one of the best goalkeepers in the club's history. I am personally very grateful to him for keeping 25 clean sheets last season and for his overall contribution on the pitch in my first year in charge. All the players and staff wish him the best and wish him the next phase of his career."
Manchester United's De Gea's contract extension farce is chaotic, but not uncommon, after all, similar situations have happened at Old Trafford in recent years. The most recent time was Ronaldo's departure process. Star players say goodbye in an unpleasant way, no matter who is right and who is wrong, it has happened repeatedly over the years, Di Maria, Romelu Lukaku are other names.
David Beckham revealed this week that it took him three years to be able to watch Manchester United again after having to move to Real Madrid in 2003 because he was "obviously upsetting" to leave.
The same was true of Ruud van Nistelrooy in 2006, who also moved to Real Madrid from Manchester United and became team-mates again with Bey. The Dutch shooter was purged by Ferguson because of his discord with Cristiano Ronaldo. Interestingly, the Portuguese winger also went to the Bernabeu later and the two shook hands and made peace.
"I always thought I would retire at Manchester United." "Sometimes plans don't keep up with change, life is so real and cruel, not just football. My last few months at Manchester United can only be described as difficult."
Legend or not, Manchester United players could leave in pain, with 'Captain Wonder' Robson's last game at the Reds being the 1994 FA Cup final and he didn't even make the squad. Roy Keane and Fergus turned against each other and have not yet reconciled. And, not only the players, but also the manager can end tragically, Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's start is a world of difference from their ending.
Athletics revealed that few players who have left Manchester United in the past 60 years can leave in a happy mood. It's no surprise that money, expectations, relationships, the manager's decisions, etc., are all factors that can be fun in football. It's like when a player first signs for a team, they are optimistic and smiling. But seeing the new people laughing, who smells the old people crying.
Some people will spend many years slowly accepting the facts, like Vanney and Xiaobie, but others will take longer or never recover, Keane is such an example. Charlie Mitton, uncle of Manchester United journalist Andy Mitton, was a Manchester United winger who left in the 50s for 50 years and went to Colombia to play football, still lingering in 2002.
De Gea was supposed to leave United in 2015, when he was ready to move to Real Madrid and everything was done, but the fax machine failed and the transfer failed. De Gea eventually renewed his contract and became the "duck father" who repeatedly helped Van Gaal and Jose Mourinho out of trouble. He set a goalkeeper appearance record and a clean sheet record in the team's history, and played for Manchester United for 12 years, finishing in the top 10 games in the team's history.
Now 32, David De Gea entered the final year of his contract last season and United did not activate his one-year priority extension. That's because De Gea's salary is too high, £375,000, which is first in the team after Cristiano Ronaldo's departure. Manchester United offered a contract with reduced treatment, but both sides ultimately did not sign and it turned out that De Gea missed the opportunity.
If De Gea renews his contract before the end of the season, then fate could be rewritten. Manchester United have won the Premier League Golden Glove with 17 clean sheets this season, but his performances have slipped in the final games of the season, including the Europa League against Sevilla, the Premier League against West Ham and the FA Cup final against Manchester City, all of which have been held responsible for the defeat.
Fans have doubts about De Gea, as have Ten Hag. The framework for the extension that United and David De Gea initially agreed to was not agreed to by the reserved Ten Hag, which caused both sides to take a step back. In the end, the club controversially decided to withdraw the contract offer.
It is reported that Manchester United recognize De Gea's professionalism and he brings more positive influence in the dressing room.
The source told Athletics.com: "In terms of character, David (De Gea) is beyond reproach. His behaviour is always calm, but in modern goalkeepers, such as Pickford compared to Everton, this may be considered a shortcoming of lack of intensity and passion. In particular, he lacks passion, which may displease the fans, and the goalkeeper sometimes needs to curse. However, there is a positive side to this, he is a good guy and unlike some of his other teammates who cause trouble. David's personality is great overall, and despite being older than his teammates, he is also active in learning. He's still improving, football, and his saves and reactions are still at a high level. We should not forget that he saved United many times during the season."
Last season, Manchester United manager Ten Hag wanted to bring in a different type of goalkeeper, and De Gea had to change his style of play. The source confirmed: "He tries to play according to the manager's request and sometimes performs well. But that means taking risks and playing football, which is not De Gea's character. For him, this is not a strength, but it is easy to make mistakes. He tries to adapt, but his strength is obviously not possession, which is a huge departure from the trend of modern goalkeepers."
De Gea's sorties last season have become more aggressive than in the past, as Ten Hag demanded. "David's sweeper style of play has improved a lot, and he has become more courageous in protecting the gaps behind the centre-back. It wasn't good enough at first, but then it slowly improved, and Ten Hag also praised. But obviously he's not an elite in handling the ball, he's tried and he delivers long passes with precision, and unfortunately a lot of people ignore that and only pay attention to the negatives."
De Gea could improve, but sadly, couldn't be fast, and eventual decision-maker Ten Hag, with a £120 million budget, could choose between a new centre-forward and a new goalkeeper. If it weren't for the financial constraints, there would no doubt that Manchester United would have traded David De Gea and would not have led to a farce of contract extensions.
Manchester United's introduction of strikers has also made De Gea face more difficulties, and if Ten Hag spends £100 million to sign Kane, there will undoubtedly be no money to replace the goalkeeper, and De Gea will have to be kept. But with the Tottenham captain too expensive and difficult to buy, Ten Hag changed his mind and intended to change the goalkeeper.
Inter Milan goalkeeper Andre Onana, 27, looks set to soon become United's new regular goalkeeper. His performances in the Champions League final attracted global attention and Pep Guardiola was full of praise for him, which also encouraged Ten Hag to bring in. Onana left Ajax on a free transfer last year, but he had a lot of low-level mistakes in the Eredivisie, which disappeared over the past season, with Onana being the first choice for Ten Hag because of his excellent passing and qualified saves.
De Gea's farewell will remind fans of his friend Ander Herrera's move to Paris Saint-Germain, and the duck daddy will not even have the chance to say goodbye to Old Trafford on the spot compared to the Egyptian commissar four years ago. Bruno Fernandes made it clear on social media: "You deserve to say goodbye at Old Trafford, let all the fans cheer for you and make good memories for you."
There are fans who oppose De Gea, who have produced nearly two hours of video of his mistake, which has gone viral on social media. But if you were to make a video of Daddy Duck, how long would it be? As a reminder, De Gea's record 14 saves against Arsenal alone is a minute long. De Gea, on the other hand, has made a total of 545 appearances for Manchester United, keeping 190 clean sheets straightforward.
However, football doesn't always work out as it should be, and De Gea's end to his 12-year career at Manchester United is a sad ending, but not surprising. His time at Old Trafford was well-paid, especially in recent years, and in addition to the repetition of his contract, Manchester United also treated him well.
What is certain is that the next time De Gea appears at the Theater of Dreams, he will be warmly welcomed by the audience. The 32-year-old Spanish goalkeeper is a legend in the team's history, especially after he left the team. His mistakes will be forgotten and the pressure will shift to Onana, which is not easy for the Manchester United goalkeeper. There is a song that sings: Whoever does not get, but what is past, is always the most right.