David de Gea: Ex-United ace’s take on potential Old Trafford return
David de Gea: Ex-United ace’s take on potential Old Trafford return Manchester United signed Senne Lammens last summer, two years after David de Gea’s departure. The Spaniard left Old Trafford after the expiry of his contract in the summer of 2023, with the Red Devils signing Andre Onana as his replacement. Fresh from helping Inter Milan reach the Champions League final, the Cameroonian was expected to power the Premier League giants’ resurgence under former manager Erik ten Hag.
However, Onana’s time at the Theatre of Dreams turned out to be a disaster. In his two seasons with United, the Cameroonian divided opinion among fans following a series of high-profile errors, conceding 150 goals in 102 appearances. The English giants ultimately grew tired of his performances last summer and brought in Lammens to address their goalkeeping woes, while offloading Onana on loan to Trabzonspor.
The Belgian custodian has been a revelation so far and looks like the perfect successor to De Gea. The Spaniard, meanwhile, took a one-year sabbatical after leaving United before joining Fiorentina, where he currently plies his trade. De Gea’s Old Trafford spell De Gea arrived at United in the summer of 2011 as the legendary Edwin van der Sar’s replacement.
The Spaniard had a shaky start to his Old Trafford tenure before becoming one of the pillars of the first team. The 35 year old won the Premier League under Sir Alex Ferguson and was also the No. 1 through a series of managerial changes.
There were moments in the post-Ferguson era where he turned up as a one-man army, single-handedly denying the opposition. His efforts saw him win the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year Award a record four times, becoming the first player in the club’s history to do so. However, De Gea displayed signs of regression in the latter part of his career at Old Trafford, which is perhaps why the Red Devils opted to controversially part ways with him under Ten Hag.