David De Gea received a lot of flak in his early years in the Premier League. The Spaniard joined Manchester United for a fee of A?18.9m, British record for a goalkeeper. After his arrival, De Gea was criticised for being inconsistent and lacking the physicality required in the league.
De Gea was brought in by Sir Alex Ferguson at a tender age of 20 to replace Edwin Van Der Sar in 2011. But the stopper had a terrible first season and was relegated to the bench as Anders Lindegaard was preferred to start ahead of him.
When questioned whether he considered leaving Manchester United during the early days of struggle, the 23 year old said, ai???Sometimes. It was difficult when you get a lot of criticism like I did.
ai???But I kept strong and I always tried to remain positive. I loved training. It was a great pleasure so I just did my work and worked through it.
ai???Those early days were difficult for me and my family. But when you play for a big club like Manchester United it is normal when you don’t play well.ai???
However, the former Atletico Madrid player was quick to accept that the criticism made him work harder and helped him improve.
ai???Yes I am glad it happened in some ways because the criticism makes you stronger. A goalkeeper is a difficult position and you make mistakes. It is normal. But you have to be strong in your mind to get through it all and get better.ai???
David De Gea is now an established figure in the first team and he now believes that he is in the finest ever form, with Sundayai??i??s display in the 2-1 victory against Everton a highlight of his career.
ai???I think I am playing the best football of my career. I have been here for three years and in the beginning it was difficult. Now I am ready for everything.
ai???I think that experience at the start at United has helped me be the player and man I am now. When you have bad moments you have to improve. You have to become stronger to deal with it and I believe I have become stronger. I am a much better goalkeeper now.ai???
The win against Everton was Unitedai??i??s second consecutive league win under Van Gaal and De Gea garnered a lot of praise for his performance. De Gea became the first man in the Premier League to save a Leighton Baines penalty.
When quizzed about the game and his performance, De Gea said, ai???All the players played really well. The last 10 minutes we had a lot of pressure but we kept calm and played really well. It was probably one of my best performances for Manchester United. 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