Time for Manchester United to cut their losses and make this a transfer priority:

An £18.3m transfer fee is sure to place a lot of expectation on a young player’s shoulders. In the case of former Atletico Madrid star, David De Gea, maybe it was too much too soon. The Spaniard has had his every move analysed and micro-analysed and has come up short in a number of departments.

We all know that he’s a great shot-stopper, as are many young keepers, but he lacks the command of his area that great goalkeepers tend to have. Naturally, this is something that comes with age, but it’s not clear that Manchester United can afford to wait for him to blossom into the keeper we know he will eventually become.

Following Edwin van der Sar was always going to be a hard act. Poor performances against Blackburn (in a 3-2 defeat) and against Fulham this August have seen him dropped. His replacement, Anders Lindegaard hasn’t been much better, but he’s always been there to fill-in whenever Sir Alex has needed him. This has clearly frustrated the young Spaniard.

The Telegraph claim that De Gea has informed his agent, Jorge Mendes, that he desires to return to La Liga. It’s also suggested that Real Madrid are keen to sign a young keeper to keeper Casillas on his toes at the Bernabeu. De Gea would obviously fit that billing and may well be viewed as a long-term solution at Madrid.

Whilst it would be disappointing to see Manchester United selling De Gea before he proved himself, it may well be the best thing for the club. Real Madrid would offer United a fair price (though I’m sure they’d make a loss overall, should they sell him) and Manchester United could reimburse these funds into another more experienced keeper.

My feeling is that Manchester United should have been in the market for Hugo Lloris (who isn’t having a great time at Spurs). High quality, experienced keepers are extremely hard to come by nowadays. The very best (Casillias, Buffon, Cech, Reina, etc) tend to be loyal to their club and if you do persuade them a side to sell, they tend to inflate the keeper’s price-tag.

I personally hope that Manchester United are using this opportunity to scope out potential signings in this area. We all know how important stability at the back is.

What’s your take? Is signing an experienced keeper Manchester United’s biggest priority?

Please follow @ThePerfectPass for more football related action!

Introducing the neat little app that’ll pay you to view content tailored to your interests:

ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.