David de Gea’s absence from the most recent Spain national team selection may leave Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick pondering whether to keep playing the goalkeeper.
De Gea’s form at the club level has been mostly positive this season, with his main asset of being a top-quality shot-stopper coming to United’s rescue more times than they would have wanted during the course of the current campaign. However, his game has evident limits, with the ‘keeper frequently leaving a lot to be desired when the ball is at his feet.
This season has been a tremendous disappointment for United as a whole, with defensive flaws constantly undermining their efforts, but De Gea has flourished despite being put into action more than most Premier League goalkeepers. Only Leeds’ Illan Meslier has had to make more saves this season than the Red Devils’ goalkeeper.
Last week, the 31-year-old experienced a difficult few days after United was ousted from the Champions League by his former club Atletico Madrid. Following a 1-1 draw at the Wanda Metropolitano, the La Liga giants won 1-0 at Old Trafford to secure a 2-1 aggregate victory.
His agony was exacerbated just three days later when De Gea was left off of Spain’s squads for forthcoming games against Albania and Iceland. The shot-stopper hasn’t played for his country since a UEFA Nations League match against Ukraine in October 2020.
Spain manager Luis Enrique now considers Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper Unai Simon to be his number one, while Brighton’s Robert Sanchez and Brentford goalkeeper David Raya are also ahead of De Gea in the pecking order.
Rangnick will have to decide if he wants to continue with his current number one or see his Spain exclusion as a sign of regression and start scouting back-up goalkeeper Dean Henderson. The 25-year-old did have a brief stint as United’s Premier League goalkeeper at the end of the 2020/21 season.
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Many United fans believe Henderson is the superior option when it comes to playing out from the back and generating United attacks, despite being six years De Gea’s junior. Henderson was widely expected to take up where he left off and start the season between the pipes, but a knee injury followed by contracting Covid-19 ended his prospects.
Henderson’s first-team minutes have come in the cups this season, as he has yet to make a single appearance in the Premier League. Given that United is no longer in the Champions League or FA Cup, he’ll have to hope that Rangnick’s patience with De Gea has gone thin in order for him to play again this season.
