Former Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea is still on the lookout for his next club, with the Spaniard yet to decide upon his future.
Eric Ten Hag deemed his services unnecessary as the club signed Andre Onana from Inter Milan, a keeper admired for his ability on the ball, something De Gea has been criticised for in the later years of his Manchester United career.
Throughout the summer, De Gea was linked with a move to Bayern Munich or Real Madrid; however, this move never materialised as the clubs went after other targets, they deemed more suitable.
The current Premier League Golden Glove winner will have many admirers throughout the top European divisions and within Saudi Arabia, and this article will examine the possibility of De Gea joining these sides and also how he could benefit these clubs.
Sevilla
The current Europa League champions have completed the signing of Sergio Ramos this week, and the signature of De Gea would bolster their defensive solidity further. The current keeper, Marko Dmitrovic, has done a stellar job between the sticks for Sevilla; however, De Gea would be a significant improvement in this position.
Sevilla was very shaky at the back and conceded more goals than they scored in the league last season; the keeper who kept the most clean sheets in the Premier League last season can only help this.
The only problem with the Spanish club signing the Spaniard will be the wage demands. De Gea was incredibly well paid at Manchester United and will need to take a cut to play for the majority of the options that will be listed in this article, except for one of the clubs.
Real Betis
There were rumours throughout the summer that De Gea would join the other club in Seville. The former Manchester City manager, Manuel Pellegrini, has former City keeper Claudio Bravo currently playing goalkeeper for Real Betis.
However, Bravo is 40 years old and will surely have the thought of retiring soon. De Gea still has a number of years left in his career and is arguably a better keeper than Bravo. De Gea would again improve the standard of the club in this position, and this could help the club break into the Champions League qualification places.
Betis finished sixth in La Liga last season but were very leaky at the back, something that De Gea would help with due to his shot-stopping ability. However, similar to the Sevilla issue, the club may struggle to afford the cost of his wages.
FC Porto
The club previously signed a former Spanish international that had been deemed unnecessary in Iker Casillas, so the club could do the same with De Gea.
The current first-choice keeper at the club is Diogo Costa, the Portuguese number one; however, he is prone to many mistakes; proof of this was a fixture against Liverpool in the Champions League.
De Gea would significantly improve the standard of goalkeeping at the club if he were to move to Portugal. The Spaniard would also help in the club’s desire to regain the title from their rivals, Benfica.
The issues that would stop De Gea from joining Porto would once again be the wage demands; however, another issue may be the desire of the keeper to move to Portugal. Despite Porto being consistently in the Champions League, De Gea may not want to move to Portugal with his family, as he has openly talked about his love for Manchester and the desire to move back to La Liga.
Real Sociedad
The Basque club could be an option for De Gea, as the club has once again qualified for the Champions League. Their current number one, Álex Remiro, has been perfectly competent for the club, but a club can always evolve and improve.
Sociedad could look at the example of Liverpool, which replaced Loris Karius with Alisson Becker to drive the club further forward.
Sociedad had an impressive defensive season last year, but if they look to achieve the perceived impossible of winning the La Liga, bringing in De Gea to improve this position further could only be seen as a positive and a step to achieving this dream; the last time Sociedad won the league was in 1982.
Similar to the issues at Sevilla and Betis, the financing of the deal would be tough, but the club may be able to do it as it competes in the Champions League.
Al-Nasser
De Gea could join any of the Saudi Arabian clubs, as they would be able to meet the wage demands of the Spaniard.
De Gea would need to decide whether he wants to move with his family to the Middle East and play at a lower standard than he is used to.
The argument is easy: he would improve every club out in Saudi Arabia, maybe apart from the clubs that have signed keepers over the summer.
The only issue with De Gea moving to Saudi Arabia is that many clubs have filled their foreign player quota and would have to remove one of these players to register the Spaniard.
De Gea has plenty of options and would be a great fit for most clubs a level above the elite level. However, if he maintains his wage demands, he may struggle to find a club that can afford him, except for those in Saudi Arabia.
De Gea has an important decision to make: does he hold out for a club to meet his demands, move to Saudi Arabia, or take a pay cut?
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