Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea could be offered a ‘substantial pay rise’ on his already-staggering £375,000-a-week contract if he leaves the Premier League for Saudi Arabia this summer.
Cristiano Ronaldo, it seems, was not wrong about the pulling power of the Middle East, even if the sudden influx of big names to the Saudi Pro League is more the result of the obscene riches on offer than the any ‘sporting’ prospects.
Anyone looking to parrot Asamoah ‘I moved to Al-Ain for the challenge’ Gyan should not bother wasting their breath.
Karim Benzema will take home around £90 million-a-year at Al-Ittihad. N’Golo Kante has multiplied his wages by six since leaving Chelsea.
And, according to The Standard, Manchester United’s David de Gea can expect to earn even more than the £375,000-a-week contract he is currently on at Old Trafford should he follow in the footsteps of Ronaldo, Benzema, Kante, Ruben Neves, Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy.
A contract which, admittedly, has just days left to run. De Gea will officially become a free-agent at the end of this month and its telling that, despite beginning talks months ago, an extension has not yet been rubber stamped.
De Gea could leave Man United for Saudi Arabia
With Manchester United stepping up their pursuit of Andre Onana – a goalkeeper-turned-playmaker who thrived under Erik ten Hag at Ajax – De Gea would have to not only reduce his wage demands substantially but also accept a back-up role if he is to stay at Old Trafford beyond this summer.
Ten Hag has made it clear that he wants a goalkeeper far more comfortable with the ball at his feet. It’s fitting, in a way, that De Gea’s final appearance of the Ten Hag era could be the FA Cup final defeat to Manchester City; a game in which his passing was about as accurate as a broken Sat-Nav.
“They do need to get rid of him,” United legend Gary Neville tells Sky Sports’ The Overlap podcast. “Either now or, if they’ve not got the money, then obviously a year later is the maximum.
“I agree with Roy (Keane); A goalkeeper is everything to a league (title win). You have to have a brilliant goalkeeper. You have to have an unbelievable goalkeeper.”
De Gea has undoubtedly been ‘unbelievable’ at times during his United career. He was the club’s Player of the Year for three seasons in a row after all. But those days feel like lightyears ago now.
Onana is not only five years younger, but also far more suited to Ten Hag’s proactive, possession-heavy style.
According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Onana’s agent was in Manchester for talks this week.
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