De Gea looks like he’s Real gone kid
DAVID DE GEA may have played his last game for Manchester United, who fear the Spaniard is unable to resist the temptation to go home to Real Madrid. De Gea limped out of yesterday’s draw with a hamstring injury and the goalkeeper is set to miss United’s final game of the season at Hull City on Sunday.
Manager Louis van Gaal admitted that the opportunity to return to Madrid, where his girlfriend Edurne Garcia and family are based, may be too much for de Gea to turn down — despite the offer of a new contract at United worth up to £200,000 a week.
Van Gaal said: ‘I analyse his position and then I say he is Spanish, he is a Spanish international, still behind Iker Casillas, now a Spanish club is coming, his girlfriend is Spanish, his father and mother come here every week or every two weeks so it is difficult.
‘He shall not leave us so easily because we have a great club. But he can go to another great club and that is for him to decide.
‘We have given a fantastic contract because we want him to stay.’
United would demand in excess of £25million to sell de Gea this summer, even though he only has one year left on his contract.
The 24-year- old had been ever present in the team during van Gaal’s first season at Old Trafford until he was replaced by Victor Valdes yesterday.
In terms of the football, we didn’t get a game until the last half-hour, when Arsenal finally turned up.
Earlier, Wenger’s team were emotionally absent, allowing their great rivals to dominate possession and develop momentum.
At half-time, their manager must have stripped the paint from the walls.
As it turned out, Arsenal’s late improvement was enough. They equalised and could have won had Olivier Giroud possessed a genuine goalscorer’s instinct.
The point they gained was less i mportant than the two they f orced United to drop. Beat Sunderland at h o me on Wednesday night and Wenger and his players will have sealed third place in the table.
For a while here, it l ooked unlikely. United were not exactly irresistible early on but they were superior. Only when Phil Jones fell flat on his face under pressure from Giroud did United look at all vulnerable and, typically, the France striker could not take advantage.
United’s goal arrived just after the half-hour as Ashley Young’s cross was driven in by Ander Herrera at the near post.
They almost scored again just before half-time, Daley Blind’s shot rebounding off Chris Smalling, and at this stage Arsenal had not managed a shot on target.
But, after de Gea’s exit through injury, it was not long before 33-year-old understudy Valdes was picking the ball from the back of the net.
Another substitute, Arsenal’s Theo Walcott, ran on to a diagonal ball down the right with eight minutes left and advanced on another replacement, United’s Tyler Blackett.
Certainly Walcott was looking to cross but the ball struck Blackett’s studs and l ooped behind Valdes and into the far corner of the goal.
Walcott celebrated with due enthusiasm but this was, in truth, an own goal, all be it a rather unfortunate one to earn Arsenal a point — which could have been more if Giroud had not flashed a shot into the side netting from close range late in the game.