Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea should be Real Madrid’s number one transfer target this season, according to David Garrido on Sky Sport’s La Liga Weekly podcast.
The Los Blancos have been in the market for a world-class shot-stopper since Iker Casillas was dropped from the first-team and eventually let go to Porto on a free. Costa Rican Keylor Navas currently holds the number one jersey, but the Spanish side are still on the lookout for a bigger name.
Real Madrid previously tried to sign De Gea in 2015, but a deal fell through after paperwork was not processed in time to meet the transfer deadline.
They have kept tabs on the Spaniard, while also keeping an eye on other goalkeepers, including Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris, Chelsea star Thibaut Courtois and Italian starlet Gianluigi Donnarumma, who is currently at AC Milan.
De Gea to Real?
Following a difficult start to life in Manchester, after moving from Atletico Madrid for just over £21m in 2011, De Gea has become one of the most consistent keepers in the Premier League, if not the world. He is currently second in the Premier League clean sheet table for this season with 10, while since moving to Old Trafford, he has won the Premier League and FA Cup during his 261 appearances for the club.
He has also successfully taken over ex-Real star Casillas’s mantle as Spain’s first-choice goalkeeper, with 19 caps to his name, but the Santiago Bernabeu outfit want the 26-year-old to become the permanent replacement for Casillas in the Spanish capital.
“For me I think that De Gea is the next Galatico. Navas is under such pressure right now, you can really sense that. People are talking about it and you can see it by his demeanour on the pitch,” said Garrido.
End of the line for Navas?
Navas has not fared terribly since moving from Levante in 2015, winning the Champions League last season, along with finishing runner-up in the La Liga for two years running.
In 2015, he broke the club record of number of consecutive clean sheets, but has only managed four in 20 league appearances this season.
In 2015, Navas was linked with swapping Real Madrid for Man United in a deal that would have seen De Gea heading the opposite direction, as per ESPN, and the Red Devils may want him included in any offer for their first-choice keeper, with Sergio Romero their only other recognised senior shot-stopper.
