PETER: I’D KEEP ON WITH DE GEA
DEAN HENDERSON’S rave reviews this season have led to suggestions he is set to challenge David De Gea as Manchester United’s No1 goalkeeper.
But Peter Schmeichel says Henderson is nowhere near ready yet to knock De Gea off his Old Trafford throne.
While Henderson has thrived on loan at Sheffield United, several high-profile mistakes from De Gea have seen his decade-long status as United’s undisputed firstchoice called into question.
Henderson has kept 10 clean sheets this term, compared to De Gea’s eight, and conceded five fewer goals in the Premier League.
But he is still not ready for United, according to goalkeeping great Schmeichel, who won five league titles and the
Champions
League during eight years at
Old
Trafford.
He said:
“Would anyone seriously consider not having David De Gea in goal and put Dean Henderson in now?
“There’s no doubt about Henderson’s potential, but he’s played one season at a club who has had an unbelievable run in the Premier League.
“But Henderson will need to show another season, like he’s just come through, and then another one in order to convince everyone that he is the right guy. “There’s a big difference between being the No1 at Bramall Lane and being the No1 at Old Trafford. Even just being a player at those two clubs. “I have seen a lot of guys come into Old Trafford with great reputations and they haven’t been able to do what they promised to do, with performances and talent. “That’s simply because the pressures at Old Trafford are different. “Just as an example, if Henderson makes a mistake – and I can only remember one he made against Liverpool – it’s ‘oh yeah but he’s young and talented and blah blah blah’, because he plays for Sheffield United. “And if he makes that mistake for Manchester United, then it’s headlines until the next game, where they question his ability to be No1.
“The pressures, the outside pressures, are so different. If you make a mistake playing for Sheffield United, well, fine, it’s what happens, you’re not expected to win every game.
“But you are when you’re playing for the bigger clubs. So let’s see how he develops and keep an eye on him. But it’s far too early.
“So the question: De Gea or Henderson? There’s really only one answer to that.”
Blades boss Chris Wilder criticised Henderson after he conceded a late soft shot from Georginio Wijnaldum, leading to a 1-0 home defeat to Liverpool last September.
Schmeichel said Wilder may ultimately have done Henderson a big favour by publicly admonishing him, suggesting it will help the young England hopeful become mentally tougher.
“He [Wilder] is a certain kind of manager,” said Schmeichel, speaking on an Instagram live chat from his home in Denmark, where he has been on lockdown.
“I like him a lot, I like his way of approaching football. It’s not too scientific and, to be fair, he’s combined oldschool with new-school.
“For someone like Henderson to be criticised publicly, it’s not bad training, if he wants to be the No 1 at Old Trafford.”
DEAN HAS LONG WAY TO GO TO MATCH DE GEA INSISTS UNITED LEGEND