Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea is just not having it. Following his side’s 1-0 Championship Sunday loss to Crystal Palace today, De Gea urged the wantaway players to leave the club this summer. It was an internal indictment of the team chemistry problems that were reported on all year long.
De Gea also labeled the season itself “horrible,” and he’s totally right in that regard, as United recorded their lowest points total of the Premier League era. It wasn’t their lowest all-time finish in the PL, as that came during the one-year catastrophic disaster that was the David Moyes era.
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New manager Erik ten Hag really has his work cut out for him, as this will be one major rebuild.
“I cannot wait [to play under Erik ten Hag],” De Gea told BBC Sport.
“I am excited for the next season, new manager, new players. Hopefully we will improve put Manchester United in a better position. We need to trust in the future.”
Ok that’s enough of the bright side. Now it’s time for the realness.
De Gea also said: “The best thing that happened today is the season has finished.”
“I want to forget this season and be 100% ready for the next season and be positive. It has been horrible, a very bad season in all ways, it has been very tough. It is time to rest and prepare your minds for next season.”
The Spaniard also discussed the character concerns in this side:
“The new manager and staff are already looking for new players. Hopefully, they bring good ones with good character.”
“Ones who want to stay, stay at the club. Ones that don’t want to stay go out. You don’t have to stay here.”
See the links above for our take on who might be staying/leaving this summer.
Cristiano Ronaldo joins De Gea to comprise the only two true contenders for the team’s player of the year award. Ronaldo, who has won the award three times (2004, 2007 and 200), scored 18 league goals this year (United might have been a lower second page of the table side this season, had they not re-signed him) while De Gea registered numerous stellar performances in goal.
He’s won the award four times already, including three in a row between 2014 and 2016.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.