Manchester United long-serving goalkeeper David De Gea has left the club after failing to agree on a new deal. After 12 years with the team, the Spanish custodian departs Old Trafford as a free agent. After moving from Ajax to the Premier League last summer, Erik ten Hag kept De Gea as his starting custodian and gave him the Golden Glove trophy for keeping the most clean sheets.
“I only wanted to say goodbye to all Manchester United supporters with this message. I want to say how grateful and appreciative I am for your love over the past 12 years. Since my dear Sir Alex Ferguson welcomed me to this club, we’ve accomplished a lot,” De Gea wrote on Instagram. “Every time I put this shirt on, I felt a tremendous sense of pride. Only a select few fortunate footballers received the honor of leading the squad and representing this institution—the largest club in the world. Now is the ideal time to take on a fresh task and push myself once more under unfamiliar circumstances. My heart will always belong to Manchester. I’ll never forget how Manchester influenced me. We’ve witnessed it all.”
“To even be able to play one game for Manchester United requires a lot of skill and character,” head coach Erik ten Hag said about David De Gea. “In the goalkeeping position, where every game puts you in the limelight, to do it 545 times over 12 years is a noteworthy accomplishment. His level of performance is demonstrated by the four times he received Player of the Year honors from both the supporters and his teammates. He will always be recognized as one of the finest goalkeepers in the club’s history. I want to express my appreciation to him for helping to contribute to the 25 clean sheets we had last season and for his general work on the pitch during my first season with the club.”
De Gea left Atletico Madrid to join United in 2011, and he has since made 545 appearances, the highest of any custodian in club history. De Gea also surpassed Peter Schmeichel’s record for United clean sheets last year, leaving Old Trafford with 190 shutouts overall in all competitions. During his twelve years at United, the 45-cap Spain international won five significant titles, including the Premier League in 2013 and the Europa League in 2017.
For more football news, click here
