David De Gea was one of the players who Sir Alex Ferguson absolutely had to have.
Ferguson clearly learned how counter-productive it was to temporarily fill the gap left by Peter Schmeichel with unsuccessful replacements in the form of Mark Bosnich, Fabien Barthez and Tim Howard.
Edwin van der Sar eventually arrived and proved himself Schmeichel’s natural successor between the sticks at Old Trafford, just the six years after the Danish stopper left the Red Devils.
Fergie was eager to avoid a similar problem when Van Der Sar hung up his gloves and the Scot put all his eggs in the De Gea basket.
A then-British record fee for a goalkeeper was agreed between United and Atletico Madrid, and the Spanish ‘keeper was suddenly the new No. 1 at the Theatre of Dreams.
And former goalkeeping coach Eric Steele has revealed just how badly Fergie wanted to sign De Gea in 2011.
“I can only remember Sir Alex Ferguson missing two United matches,” Steele writes for the Daily Mail. “He missed a Manchester derby in 2000 for his son’s wedding. The other time? To scout the brilliant David de Gea.
“I joined United in 2008 and, from that moment, we needed to be ready for the day Edwin Van Der Sar retired.
“I was convinced that a 19-year-old De Gea was the right man to replace him. I showed a three-minute DVD compilation to Sir Alex and then we went to watch him play for Atletico Madrid at Valencia on the night United played Scunthorpe in the League Cup.
He sees things that mere mortals cannot conceive https://t.co/TPp0P5DnJ8
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“Sir Alex knew he was the right signing inside 65 minutes. David showed composure, concentration and reflexes. He made one terrific save that went through a load of bodies.
“It was a brave decision to commit £17m to a 19-year-old goalkeeper. Sir Alex had been patient with young outfield players before but this was the first time he did it for a goalkeeper.”
De Gea has since gone on to prove that he’s one of the greatest ‘keepers in world football and his stunning performance against Arsenal on Saturday has left many supporters believing that the Spain international had eclipsed all competition.
