We wrote this week that David de Gea will not let go of the Manchester United number one spot without a fight, amid new competition from Dean Henderson.
He has a place on the line for Spain with Euro 2021 next summer too, and last night he was in action for his country against Germany in a 1-1 draw.
While he did not keep a clean sheet, De Gea was impressive from start to finish in a competitively played match.
De Gea made seven saves in total, five of which came from shots inside the box, while Chelsea’s Kepa Arrizabalaga sat on the bench.
A strong statement from De Gea
Whoscored.com rated De Gea as the man-of-the-match, awarding him a 7.85 rating.
Germany’s Kevin Trapp received a 7.11 rating by way of comparison.
His performance was praised by Spanish football pundit Graham Hunter.
De Gea knows he has competition for his place from Dean Henderson, but he is used to dealing with pressure.
The difference now is that he may work even harder, and his concentration levels will stay high.
De Gea can make 100 saves, but if he makes one big mistake, that is all people will talk about for days. It is a tough task being a goalkeeper at a top club.
But last night he could not have done too much more, and this was a signal to Henderson which said, ‘I’m not going anywhere’.
England now have two matches, taking place on Saturday and Tuesday, and Henderson will be hoping to get his chance in one of them, ahead of Jordan Pickford.
The pressure will be on him, and this will be good practice for him in case his chance at United comes along.
De Gea has experienced the highs and lows as a United player, and last night signalled he is still capable of providing big moments, and the club would be taking a gamble by moving him aside.
Fan reaction
Supporters were encouraged to see De Gea showing fight, and hope the challenge from Henderson will bring him back to his best…
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