Is De Gea on his way out?

David De Gea is one of the world-class goalkeepers and his ten seasons with Manchester United are a certain testament to this fact. But every journey has to end sometimes and it looks like the Spaniard might be leaving the Red Devils at the end of the season.

At 30 years old, De Gea should be in his prime and could play at a top level for five more seasons at least. But it’s not his ability that’s problem – it might be that he simply isn’t hungry enough to fend off the challenge of Dean Henderson for the spot between the goalposts. Has the time for change arrived?

Ole-Gunnar Solskjaer’s decision to keep Henderson at Old Trafford and deny the 24-year-old Dean Henderson another loan spell after two successful seasons at Sheffield United was made to challenge underperforming De Gea and make him raise his performances this season. The impressive Henderson is seen as the long-term No.1 for the Red Devils for the future but has been used sparingly this season with Solskjaer keeping faith in De Gea.

Henderson has started nine matches this season and made 10 appearances in total, replacing De Gea at half-time in the win against the Saints at St. Mary’s in the Premier League. The promising young keeper has kept three clean sheets in seven Premier League appearances this season. The Spaniard has improved slightly since the arrival of Henderson as back up keeper’ but has been at fault for a number of soft goals conceded in the first half of the season.

From Tottenham to Liverpool, from Liverpool to rehab

It’s worth mentioning that David is the top earner at the club. His contract is worth £19,500,000 per year, which is just over half a million US dollars a week. Let’s repeat that. De Gea makes half a million of US dollars every week. If you’re on a contract like that, you really should be starring in goal week in, week out. And although De Gea has his moments of brilliance, every big mistake prompted the fans and pundits alike to ask whether the place in the team is guaranteed to the Spaniard no matter what.

Solskjaer has a decision to make and it’s not going to be done based on stats alone. For such an important position in the team, there are many factors for the manager. There have been noises about De Gea’s old club Atletico Madrid wanting to re-sign the ‘keeper if Jan Oblak should depart Wanda Metropolitano at the end of the season. Perhaps it would be a nice way for De Gea’s career to turn full circle. It’s a big question mark for Manchester United.

Still, De Gea’s market value and wage requirements might prove a stumbling block because there aren’t many clubs who could afford to pay around $27 million per year in wages. The Spanish international’s deal still has more than two years to run and he may decide to stick around even if Henderson becomes first-choice goalkeeper in the meantime.