Top 10 Manchester United signings of the decade

1. David De Gea

David de Gea

Many consider him as Sir Alex Ferguson’s parting gift to his beloved club, and 6 and a half years since the legendary Scott’s retirement, David de Gea still remains the first name in the team sheet. The Spaniard went from a novice who looked nervy in his first game wearing the Red shirt to becoming one of the best goalkeepers in the world. All of it, though, was possible because early in the decade, Sir Alex decided he could not allow a repeat of an old mistake.

Following Peter Schmeichel’s departure before the turn of the last century, Manchester United had failed to find a safe pair of hands under the bar, until Edwin van der Saar arrived in the summer of 2005. As the Dutchman entered the twilight of his career, though, United were smart enough to identify his successor and managed to bring de Gea to Old Trafford from Atletico Madrid in June 2011, in a deal worth £18.9m. Since then, the young boy has transformed himself into a stellar goalkeeper and has been the only glowing constant in the United team in the last decade.

Manchester United fans have probably lost count of the number of times that the Spaniard has saved United over the years. On some days, he can be just unconquerable, churning out one save after another. The games against Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur from the last 2 seasons were etched in the minds of the fans.

Since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, Manchester United have been on a rough ride that refuses to be over. The defence has been shambolic at times, but every fan will shudder to think how much worse it could have gone had it not been for an infamous fax machine that helped keep Real Madrid at bay! Without any doubt, de Gea is the best Manchester United signing of the last decade and continues to be Sir Alex’s gift that keeps on giving.