Mour in class dig
IT is the summer of the expensive keepers – but Jose Mourinho insists he would not swap David de Gea for any of them.
Liverpool broke the world record with the £65million signing of Brazil’s Alisson (below) from Roma.
That was then topped by Chelsea’s astonishing £71m signing of Kepa Arrizabalaga (centre) from Athletic Bilbao, the Spaniard arriving as replacement for Thibaut Courtois who moved to Real Madrid for £34m.
But Manchester United manager Mourinho goes into today’s match at Brighton stressing: “Would I swop De Gea for anyone? No! That’s the best question and the easiest answer.”
And the United boss (bottom) said the valuation on De Gea, 27, was “zero”
– because he is not on the market.
He cost what has been proven to be a bargain £18m from Atletico
Madrid seven years ago.
Mourinho said: “His valuation is zero because he is a Manchester
United player who as soon as possible will sign a new contract.
“He likes it here, we love him, we want him to stay, he wants to stay, so when a player is not in the market the value is zero.
“A goalkeeper wins points and wins titles so he is as important as another player. The old story of, ‘I’d pay that for a striker but not for a goalkeeper’ is old fashioned. The market now understands that and I am happy for the keepers.
“But with David, it is a collective situation involving the player, his agent (Jorge Mendes) and United.
“The agent didn’t create a war to try to achieve his objectives.
“He respected the club, he respected the player, the player was always keen to stay and happy to do so and the club understood how important he was.
“So we have always tried to give him the conditions to make him happy, so credit to all three parties.
“I don’t want to be disrespectful or arrogant about other keepers and say Courtois is not good or Manuel Neuer is not good – there are so many. What I am saying is that I wouldn’t swap De Gea for anyone.”
Mourinho also defended him after his high-profile mistake in the World Cup for Spain, which led to one of Cristiano Ronaldo’s three goals for Portugal in a 3-3 draw between the great rivals.
That sparked media criticism in De Gea’s homeland but the
Special One pointed out: “David played in four matches in the World
Cup and he made one mistake.
“And with that mistake, his team still didn’t lose. He made the mistake against Portugal on one of Cristiano’s goals.
“His team still won the group then lost on penalties to Russia in their fourth match.
“So in 360 minutes, David made only one mistake. All the other guys, because they play for Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, they are protected.
“And the poor guy who plays for United was the one that the press destroyed.”
Brighton v Man United Today, 4pm, SS Main Event Last five meetings Overall record well in that first year, though. David was sacked and they were suddenly in reaction mode. “The strategy had been to keep David for three, four, five years – he had a seven-year deal, remember.
“But all of a sudden, they were, ‘Who will we go for next?’The answer was Louis van Gaal who has a completely different background to David, a different set of footballing values and who started signing a completely different type of player.
“Then you go for Jose Mourinho, a serial winner, and say, ‘Come on Jose, win us a league.’ He gets the players he wants and it does look as though the club is jumping around, reacting rather than long-term planning. All of a sudden, you need to reset. “I still believe the club have to support Mourinho wholly, because they decided to bring him in. United DE ONE AND ONLY: David de Gea is irreplaceable for Jose Mourinho have spent £700million since Sir Alex left so you can not say they have not supported their managers. “But they have veered away from their principles and values in the last five years.
“There were three basic principles I thought would be immovable. They always had a British manager, brought young players through and predominantly played with width.” Yet Neville is backing Mourinho to sort it out and said: “There does seem to be that tension between long-term thinking and values and the need for short-term success. “Jose is here to win and win now. He is not here for a 20-year project. “But the board are saying, ‘If we win now, we have to rebuild a team in two years.’ I can see both sides of the story but it does not look like it has always been joined up. “And it comes back to the sacking of David Moyes. Eight months was too early.
“It was probably better for the club to let things breathe for a few years.” because I am in the movie, I could ask for royalties!
“But if they send me one of the shirts they had in the tunnel when we played there at the end of last season, saying, ‘We did it on derby day’, I would give up about the royalties.”
City led 2-0 at The Etihad but United fought back to win 3-2, denying their dream scenario and delaying the title party.
Mourinho added with a laugh: “You know, a movie without me doesn’t sell much – I need to be there.”
The United also boss insists Kevin De Bruyne’s knee injury will not have a major impact on City.
He said: “I think they have a fantastic squad.
“De Bruyne is a fantastic player but I don’t think that is a drama.
“They won at The Emirates without him starting so they are a fantastic team.”
PAUL HETHERINGTON USAIN BOLT flew into Sydney yesterday and vowed to prove he is the real deal at football.
The eight-time Olympic gold medallist will train with Central Coast Mariners for the first time on Tuesday – his 32nd birthday – after being granted an open-ended trial with the struggling A-League club.
Bolt said: “This is real, I know what I’m capable of.
“I always put my best foot forward and I’m just going to show the world what I’m made of.”
The Jamaican superstar has previously trained with Borussia Dortmund, Mamelodi Sundowns and Stromsgodset in a bid to win a professional contract.
Bolt has opted to live in the sleepy coastal region close to his team-mates rather than in Sydney.
The Mariners finished bottom of the 10-team league last season.
STEVE MORGAN