It’s a tale of two goalkeepers with ties to Manchester United but their trajectories haven’t gone as many expected when their destinies got intertwined.
David de Gea was let go by Man Utd after they decided to not extend his contract, instead going the “modern” way by signing Andre Onana.
Having spent a year out of the game, United’s decision was vindicated too, before De Gea landed in Italy with Fiorentina at the start of this season.
Right on cue, De Gea thrived in Fiorentina and that coincided with Andre Onana making mistakes almost on a weekly basis as the irony was cruel to Man Utd.
Now, the Spaniard has put an exclamation mark on it by receiving the contract update he so desires amid Onana’s struggles at United.
David de Gea at Fiorentina latest
De Gea didn’t start the season as the outright No. 1 but he won that spot soon by putting in blindingly successful performances for the Serie A team.
De Gea is extremely loved in Fiorentina and has backed up that love by consistently putting in performances that have rebuilt his reputation.
He has conceded 29 goals in 28 appearances, keeping 10 clean sheets and regularly wowing the fans with breathtaking displays of reflexes and athleticism.
The Spaniard signed a one-year contract with Fiorentina at the start of the season which means he’ll be a free agent in the summer but De Gea’s form spoke for itself.
Fabrizio Romano reports that Fiorentina are set to trigger the club option in De Gea’s deal to extend his contract till 2026 in a strong show of faith in the goalkeeper.
Man Utd’s Andre Onana move has backfired
While De Gea has gone from strength to strength away from Old Trafford, the goalkeeper at the club has had the exact opposite trajectory.
That’s not to say that United made a mistake letting De Gea go, because they didn’t, but they definitely seem to have made one in signing his replacement.
Just like De Gea near the end of his time at United, Onana has a worrying tendency to make baffling unforced errors but that’s not even the worst thing.
The thing he was brought for as a “shining upgrade” – his ball-playing skills – have been even worse at times than De Gea was at United.
Onana regularly miskicks long passes and has effectively been told to stop passing short because the confidence in buildup has gone as well.
It sums up United’s recruitment record that Onana’s Utd exit rumours are heating up at the same time as De Gea’s contract is being extended at Fiorentina.
Ineos can’t let that keep happening anymore.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
