Former Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed the reason why the Old Trafford-based club signed David de Gea instead of Manuel Neuer during the latter part of his 27-year-old stint with the Red Devils.
The 25-year-old Spain international signed for Manchester United from Atletico Madrid back in 2011 for a British record transfer fee for a goalkeeper of approximately 17.8 million pounds.
However, the former Manchester United boss disclosed the fact that he wanted to sign the current Bayern Munich goalkeeper and German international, Manuel Neuer as a replacement for the retiring Edwin van der Sar.
Having said that, the erstwhile Manchester United goalkeeper coach, Eric Steele – who had been extensively scouting the then Atletico Madrid goalkeeper – persuaded Sir Alex Ferguson to sign the Spaniard instead of the German.
In a recent interview, Sir Alex Ferguson told the press, “Eric Steele had been scouting David de Gea for quite a while, but then Neuer came on the scene at Schalke. And I think Schalke would've been happy if we'd have gone and taken him.”
“So my problem was Eric because he was adamant that we must take De Gea. I said 'but Eric, the boy Neuer is the complete unit; he's mature, his physique is unbelievable', and he says 'yeah, but in three years' time, De Gea will be better'. I said ‘that’s a statement’,” the legendary Manchester United manager added.
He further recalled, “Eric and I went out to watch him (David de Gea) against Valencia away, and the things he'd been speaking about – his agility, his confidence, his speed – were evident.”
“And Eric had been building a relationship with his parents, and was so adamant, that I had to trust him – and I'm glad I did because he was right,” Ferguson concluded.
David de Gea made his first competitive appearance for the Red Devils against their city rivals, Manchester City in the Community Shield on 7 August 2011. The match ended 3-2 in favour of United.
The 25-year-old Spaniard has gone on to make 157 league appearances for Manchester United since then, winning the English Premier League in 2012-13 and the FA Community Shield in 2011 and 2013.
On 31 August 2015, however, a transfer agreement worth 29 million pounds was reached between Manchester United and Real Madrid regarding the sale of David de Gea to the Santiago Bernabeu.
The deal collapsed due to the closing of the Spanish transfer window and De Gea ended up signing a new long-term deal to stay in Manchester.
