Manchester United’s abject Europa League exit at least reinforced to Erik ten Hag who he needs to get rid of this summer. These five have blown their last chance…
David De Gea
The jury was still out on the United No.1. But Sevilla, whose three goals De Gea could be held accountable for, returned a verdict that should spell the end of a 12-year career at Old Trafford.
Ten Hag has never really been convinced by the Spanish stopper. He has made some fine saves, and some important ones too, but the sense has always been that De Gea is simply not Ten Hag’s style of goalkeeper.
The United boss, like most these days, needs a No.1 who can pick and play a pass, setting the tempo from the back while serving as the extra man to play through, around or over an opposition press. De Gea simply does not look comfortable when forced to make decisions with the ball at his feet.
That highlights the shift in expectations upon keepers. When De Gea moved to United to replace Edwin van der Sar, he was hand-picked by Sir Alex Ferguson and Eric Steele largely because of his quality in possession. Fast forward a dozen years, and De Gea appears a relic.
He’s hardly solid with his hands either. Some of the errors he has made over the last 18 months would embarrass schoolboys. Sevilla’s all-important second was very saveable, with De Gea seemingly distracted by the bar. Remember the goal he conceded against Everton in the FA Cup, when he refused to let go of the post? Schoolboys would be ashamed.
It was almost as though the goalframe served as De Gea’s comfort blanket, and the fact he refuses to stray too far from it does him no favours. He rarely comes for a cross, which feeds the narrative that De Gea lacks the necessary bravery to be a truly top-class no.1.
He’s out of contract in the summer, and though there are talks over a renewal on vastly reduced wages, that salary is still said to amount to around £200,000. That’s a big price to pay when it offers no solution to a big problem.
Read more: De Gea and Maguire top the bill in an astonishing Man Utd disasterclass in Sevilla
Harry Maguire
Maguire’s time was already up but Sevilla hammered the final nail in his United coffin.
It wasn’t just the opening goal, woeful though it was. Some blame Maguire, others hold De Gea responsible. There’s plenty of blame to go around. The goalkeeper made a poor choice and a poorly-weighted pass; Maguire failed to recognise the escape route when he was cornered by…
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