Gary Neville believes David Raya would be a good replacement for David de Gea, though has warned that changing goalkeepers could be a ‘problem’ due to the unique pressures of being Manchester United’s number one.
De Gea is out of contract in the summer and while talks over a new deal – and a massive decrease in his salary – have been positive, there are suggestions Erik ten Hag might look to bring in a keeper with ball-playing skills better equipped to playing out from the back.
Brentford’s Raya ticks plenty of boxes and is much more comfortable with his feet than his compatriot, though Neville is wary of bringing in a new keeper when De Gea is already tried and tested in what he describes as the most challenging job in English football.
‘I think Raya would interest United in the summer,’ said Neville on The Overlap.
‘I went to watch Brentford a couple of weeks ago… I think he’s going to become available, he’s only got a year left. I think he could step up.’
But reflecting on some of the keepers who wilted under the Old Trafford spotlight in the past, Neville continued: ‘It is a problem that. I’ve said it’s the single most difficult position in English football being the Manchester United goalkeeper. I genuinely believe that.
‘I think Liverpool’s number one is the second. And that’s not to be disrespectful to all other clubs, I think the Manchester United goalkeeper comes under more scrutiny if they make a mistake than any other position in English football on the pitch.
‘It’s tough! And I’ve seen lads in that goal [struggle]. That’s the problem they’ve got. It’s whether [a new goalkeeper] can handle that stadium.
‘I think it’s that element of that lull that they experience where the team are attacking at home for, say, 10 minutes and the keeper hasn’t touched the ball and they’re just there. It’s that concentration goalkeepers need to have when they’re not involved in the game.
‘I always think a Manchester United goalkeeper – or any goalkeeper – needs to have unbelievable concentration because you might go five minutes without touching the ball.
‘We’re [outfield players] always involved, or just in our positions, but a goalkeeper can just be redundant for a period in a game. I think that’s a really tough thing to have to deal with.’
Former Newcastle keeper Shay Given was also on the show and felt Raya would be a good fit for United if Ten Hag wanted to change the way the team build up from the back.
‘I do like him,’ said the Irishman. ‘If you’re saying Ten Hag wants to be the perfect Ajax manager and play out from the back, spraying it all over the place like Ederson, I think someone like Raya is very, very comfortable with the ball. But is he a better shot-stopper [than De Gea]?’
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