David de Gea has rejected Manchester United’s initial offer of a new contract, although it is still anticipated that negotiations would end well at this point. Seldom does a player accept an opening offer, but negotiations between Manchester United and the goalkeeper are moving forward. The circumstance is described as a negotiation to narrow the discrepancy between the numbers.
In September 2019, after De Gea had entered the final year of his previous contract and Alexis Sanchez’s arrival in January 2018 had given a benchmark for United’s top earners on a wage of more than £400,000 per week, the Spaniard’s salary of £375,000 per week was agreed upon. He had the advantage in negotiations with CEO Ed Woodward since he was the only prospective No. 1 for the club at the time.
Manchester United want ‘the world’s highest-paid goalkeeper’ to take a massive pay-cut in order to stay
Since his £375,00 per week wages were sanctioned, David de Gea has been the highest-paid goalkeeper in the world. However, as first reported by The Athletic in October, De Gea has rejected Manchester United’s first offer of a new contract. United have made a good proposition, but De Gea is not currently satisfied with it, according to reports. The veteran ‘keeper is not ready to take a major reduction on his £375,00 per week pay cheque, while the club fights to bring down their wage bill significantly.
He wants to stay at Old Trafford but believes that given how well he has played this year and that Erik ten Hag still views him as one of his most crucial players, the new offer should reflect this. Meanwhile, Ten Hag has granted his ‘OK’ for De Gea to stay at Old Trafford. After losing Dean Henderson to Nottingham Forest before he had even participated in a training session on loan, Ten Hag last summer sparked a significant search for goalkeepers.
The Dutchman had hoped to find a ‘keeper who could challenge De Gea, but Manchester United recruited Martin Dubravka on loan, so there was never really a contest for the job. Despite the fact that Tom Heaton, 36, had two clean sheets this season in League Cup games, Ten Hag considered him firmly as a backup. Jack Butland, a former England goalkeeper, was hired on a loan in January but has not yet played.
De Gea struggled under Ten Hag and was at fault for United’s 4-0 loss against Brentford. Thomas Frank’s team was able to take the lead thanks to his sloppy passing out from the back. But throughout this campaign, Ten Hag has grown to value De Gea and is content to have him as his No. 1 moving forward. De Gea has had a season full of outstanding saves that might help United finish the season with three titles and on track to qualify for the Champions League.
There is still a clause in De Gea’s contract to extend his stay at the club for another season. Yet, it was established long ago that Manchester United wouldn’t initiate it and would instead try to reach an extended agreement, which is what all sides hope. However, if De Gea is to leave in the summer, the Red Devils have already identified his potential replacement. Brentford’s David Raya, 27, is United’s prime candidate to succeed De Gea. Raya is valued at “at least £40 million,” according to manager Thomas Frank, and would be worth “£70 million” if he had three more years left on his contract.