David de Gea has undoubtedly been Manchester United’s most important player this season. The Spain shot-stopper is emphatically back to his best.
After the 2018 World Cup, there were fears that De Gea was never going to get back to what he once was because he suffered a huge dip in standards.
Last season, there was the real prospect of him heading for the Old Trafford exit door. United were conceding sloppy goals and there was a competitor waiting in the wings.
Academy product Dean Henderson began to emerge as a leading contender for the number one spot in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s starting XI and at one point looked as if he was going to consign De Gea to the bench long-term.
The birth of De Gea’s daughter, Yanay, meant Henderson had an opportunity to seize the moment and he did. De Gea got the nod for the Europa League final, although that only compounded the feelings of negativity around United's four-time player of the season.
While De Gea didn't have a terrible performance in goal, he missed a penalty that saw Villarreal lift the trophy after failing to save any of the 11 spot-kicks he faced in a marathon shoot-out.
However, since the start of this season, he's been absolutely sensational. Some of his saves have been simply outstanding and it does not bear thinking about how far down the table United might be without his heroics.
He was nominated for January's Premier League Player of the Month award - an accolade he no doubt deserves. At the same time, De Gea is closing in and an all-time Manchester United record.
After the 1-0 victory over West Ham United, De Gea moved above Gary Bailey in the all-time clean sheets table. He is now only 18 short of equalling Peter Schmeichel’s club record of 180.
So far this season, the 31-year-old has achieved seven shut-outs - away to Wolves (1-0), Tottenham (3-0), Villarreal (2-0) and Norwich (1-0) and in the home games against Crystal Palace (1-0), Aston Villa (1-0, FA Cup) and West Ham (1-0).
As he closes in on Schmeichel’s record there will be some fans who think that surpassing it would make him United’s greatest ever goalkeeper. But there are caveats to this.
At the time, Schmeichel was considered the best goalkeeper in the Premier League and he was a different type of shot-stopper. He was a commanding presence in the 18-yard box and you knew United were more comfortable whenever he was in the net.
You also have to factor in that Schmeichel has won more than De Gea in terms of major honours.
Overall, the Great Dane won five Premier League titles, three FA Cups, one League Cup, and the UEFA Champions League. De Gea has won one Premier League, one FA Cup, one League Cup and a Europa League (no, we’re not including the Community Shield).
There are some people who may argue that if De Gea was put into the 1999 team, or the side that graced the late noughties under Sir Alex Ferguson, he’d definitely be considered as United’s greatest keeper, but this is all hypothetical. Edwin van der Sar was also absolutely sensational.
We have to go by the facts and, while I absolutely love De Gea to bits, the legend of Schmeichel remains due to what he achieved at the club.
If De Gea manages to win a Champions League or end our Premier League drought, perhaps I’ll think again.
Was Schmeichel better than De Gea? Follow our United On My Mind writer Omar Garrick on Twitter to get involved in the discussion and give us your thoughts on the matter in the comments section below.
