HALF of Manchester United fans want David De Gea dropped – but Graeme Souness has warned they’ll lose him for good if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer puts him on the bench. The out-of-form Spaniard, 28, conceded yet another howler in the 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Sunday. With transfer speculation raging and fans turning on the […]
HALF of Manchester United fans want David De Gea dropped – but Graeme Souness has warned they’ll lose him for good if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer puts him on the bench.
The out-of-form Spaniard, 28, conceded yet another howler in the 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Sunday.
With transfer speculation raging and fans turning on the stopper, De Gea’s United days look numbered.
According to our exclusive poll, 48 per cent of supporters want the Spanish No1 – who has been club player of the year in four of the last five seasons – dropped, but Souness has issued a warning.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, the Liverpool and Scotland legend said: “You leave him out, I think you lose him forever. There would still be a queue for him.
“If Ole was to leave him out, and he brought in someone who didn’t do well, you’ve then lost the guy you’ve trusted for seven, eight years.
“And you’d end up having to buy someone else. You’ve got to stick with him. Credit is a big thing in football. The supporters love him and you saw that at half-time.”
De Gea spilled a simple long-range effort from Antonio Rudiger, allowing Marcos Alonso to poke home the rebound.
The ball didn’t bounce awkwardly or swerve, he simply dropped the catch as United threw away two more points in their race for a top-four spot.
It was just the latest blunder from the former best goalkeeper on the planet – who also gifted goals to Barcelona and Manchester City in recent weeks.
Meanwhile, Gary Neville leapt to De Gea’s defence, saying he’s earned the right to endure a rocky period after his incredible service over the years.
Nev claimed: “There are some players who build up enough credit during their careers, that you play them through.
“Let’s say Wayne Rooney had a bad time – didn’t score in 12 games for Manchester United.
“If he’s had five, six years at the club playing like he has, you don’t just ditch someone like that after five, six, seven games.
“It’s not a young player coming into the club that’s struggling.
“[De Gea] has been outstanding. He’s been the best player at Manchester United, the only top player at Manchester United for the last five or six years.”
