Manchester United had a fairly quiet transfer deadline day and there did not appear to be much suggestion of a late incoming.
Dean Henderson was mentioned in connection with a potential loan move to Newcastle United but Jesse Lingard seemed closer to Tyneside.
And given Eddie Howe’s side cannot loan two players from the same Premier League club, it seemed a bit of a non-starter.
But the Manchester Evening News are reporting that United and Newcastle agreed a swap deal between Henderson and Magpies number one Martin Dubravka.
United would have loaned in the Slovakian international, with Henderson moving to St James’ Park on a temporary basis as well.
But Dubravka apparently said no, as he would have been going from number one at Newcastle to the bench at United.
The reason Henderson would look to move on is that there does not appear to be much prospect of gametime at United now.
The Englishman actually started United’s next game, the FA Cup clash with Middlesbrough, but the elimination there means that there is not an obvious game between now and the end of the season that he will play in.
On the face of it, the report claiming that United were happy to take Dubravka on makes little sense.
It is only when viewed through the prism of Ralf Rangnick’s comments about not wanting to leave himself short that the report becomes a touch more credible.
Last month, Rangnick said of Henderson: “I would like him to stay because he’s a fantastic goalkeeper. I really like to have him on board, as one of three top goalkeepers.
“We are still in three competitions, we need the three goalkeepers we have right now.”
Of course, United have since exited the FA Cup and are now in just two competitions. But would Dubravka really have been an upgrade on Tom Heaton?
Tim Krul called Dubravka ‘amazing’ in 2021 but Newcastle would clearly view Henderson as an upgrade. That would mean that Dubravka and Heaton would have fought it out for the number two position.
Henderson would have got regular gametime on Tyneside, and perhaps that is why United were willing to accept the left-field swap.
It didn’t happen, however, and Henderson looks set for a frustrating few months with little prospect of a start ahead, as long as David de Gea stays fit.
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