De Gea gaffes put Blues in final
United manager faces calls to drop Spaniard
LONDON: Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he will stick with error-prone Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea but with a Champions League place at stake many are urging him to drop the Spaniard.
The 29-year-old’s blunders at Wembley on Sunday were a hammer blow for in-form United, who went down 3-1 to Frank Lampard’s Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final.
The Blues will face London rivals Arsenal in the final on Aug 1 after the Gunners stunned holders Manchester City 2-0 on Saturday.
De Gea allowed Olivier Giroud’s shot to trickle over the line in the dying seconds of the first half and moments after the interval Mason Mount’s shot evaded his weak attempted save.
The Times described his performance as a “horror show”.
Solskjaer conceded De Gea should have saved Mount’s goal but stood by the player, who recently surpassed Peter Schmeichel’s United appearance record for an overseas player, excluding Irish footballers.
“Of course,” replied Solskjaer when asked whether he would keep faith with his No.1, with tomorrow’s Premier League clash against West Ham next up.
“We have been unbeaten for 19 games and both [reserve goalkeeper] Sergio [Romero] and David have played really well in that run.
“I can’t speak for his confidence but he is mentally very strong.”
Outspoken United legend Roy Keane recently he was “sick to death” of De Gea after the Spaniard failed to keep out Steven Bergwijn’s shot at Tottenham and other commentators now insist he must be taken out of the firing line.
“He’s unrecognisable from the keeper who won [the club’s] four player of the year awards,” former United defender Phil Neville told the BBC.
“A confident, assured David de Gea saves all three goals. I would be worried, his inconsistency is costing United games.”
The experienced Romero is waiting in the wings, with two Premier League games remaining and a tight battle for the final two Champions League spots.
Solskjaer might rue omitting the Argentine at Wembley, having started him in all the FA Cup ties before the semi-final.
Victory over West Ham tomorrow would see United climb above Leicester City into the Champions League places.
Alan Shearer thinks it is time to hand the gloves to English goalkeeper Dean Henderson, who has excelled while on loan from Manchester United at Sheffield United.
The 23-year-old’s 13 clean sheets have played a pivotal role in the Blades’ eye-catching return to the Premier League.
“I think you only bring Dean Henderson back to Manchester United as the number one, or you keep him where he is to keep gaining experience,” former England captain Shearer said on the BBC.
“I think that time has come.” Former Chelsea and Ireland striker Tony Cascarino said De Gea needed to see a therapist to pull himself out of his spiral of decline.
RESULT
Chelsea 3 (Giroud 45+11, Mount 46, Maguire 74-og) Manchester United 1 (Fernandes 85-pen)