There were few mainstays in the Manchester United side who could have held their heads high after the end of last season, but David de Gea was one of them.
The Spaniard is now the longest-serving active squad member within the squad, and is the only first-team member to have lifted the Premier League title given Phil Jones has been cast from Ten Hag’s plans.
His form in 2022 has peaked, briefly troughed, and peaked again ahead of the World Cup break. In many ways it shows his resilience and he won a lot of respect when he faced the cameras after his blunder in the maddening 4-0 defeat to Brentford.
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In truth, despite questions over his future, United would heavily miss De Gea’s presence at the back given the current options available - he is an integral part of Erik ten Hag’s plans this season.
De Gea boasts a fantastic record of playing in every league game in 2022. He’s kept nine clean sheets in that time, which isn’t the best record in the top flight, but considering United’s fragility last season it’s not something to be ignored.
He’s also been part of a new camaraderie at the back with Lisandro Martinez helping no end with this. Raphael Varane and Diogo Dalot also look newly impassioned with De Gea playing his part in this.
His displays towards the latter end of the year have helped conger this atmosphere. Superb saves against Tottenham and West Ham stick out, the shot-stopper now back to the kind of form that is earning United points again.
His improved performances brought the praise of Ten Hag, who last month said: “I am really happy with David, he is a great goalkeeper. He is only 31, he is fit, he can progress even more, he was already impressive for Man United and will be in the future as well.”
You can vote for De Gea for the Fans' Footballer of the Year below or by clicking here :
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