David De Gea Consistency Key for Manchester United Against Arsenal
Manchester United saw out an emphatic 2-1 victory away to Arsene Wenger's Arsenal on Saturday, and manager Louis van Gaal has his goalkeeper David de Gea to thank after a continued bombardment.
An own goal from Kieran Gibbs and score from Wayne Rooney gave United the lead before Olivier Giroud struck with incredible force to give Arsenal a stoppage-time consolation.
The Gunners dominated large portions of the game, and Wenger's side was unfortunate not to breach a stoic United defence.
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Winning both the official Man of the Match award and similar recognition following a poll by United's official Twitter account, De Gea was rightly praised after a phenomenal display.
It is becoming a familiar sight for the Old Trafford club, and De Gea's consistent performances in goal for United have a large marker on Van Gaal's side residing in the Premier League's top four at present.
Development
On his BBC Sport-reported £18.9 million move to Manchester in 2011, De Gea was regarded as "an outstanding replacement for [Edwin] van der Sar," by then-manager Sir Alex Ferguson, per ManUtd.com.
Ferguson continued the comparison by claiming "We were looking for the same type of qualities [that Van der Sar had], because the one great quality Edwin always had was his composure and organisational ability."
Such comparisons, however, were not necessarily helpful in De Gea's introduction to the Premier League, and the goalkeeper initially struggled to impose himself.
Kevin McCarra of The Guardian was particularly vehement in his criticism of the goalkeeper in United's eventual 3-2 Community Shield victory over rivals Manchester City, shortly after De Gea's arrival.
"De Gea, perceived as a most promising successor to the retired Edwin van der Sar, was all but motionless as Edin Dzeko's shot went past him in first-half stoppage time to send City into a 2-0 lead. Neither De Gea or his defenders can be pardoned either for the scope they gave Joleon Lescott when he headed in from a David Silva free-kick after 38 minutes.
"
It was this performance, and errors against FC Basel and Benfica in the Champions League, that saw De Gea swiftly condemned for his inability to dominate the box in terms of organisation or physicality.
The goalkeeper, however, took on this criticism and has built on it. BBC Sport quoted De Gea in October as claiming, "You have to become stronger to deal with [criticism,] and I believe I have become stronger. I am much better now.
This season—and despite lingering links with a United move for compatriot and free agent Victor Valdes, per The Guardian—De Gea has developed into a well-rounded, high-class performer.
Once slighted for his failure to match up to Van der Sar, De Gea is now garnering unanimous praise for his consistent performances in a Red Devils shirt.
De Gea vs. Arsenal
Against Arsenal, De Gea pulled out another of these remarkable performances.
Not least could be seen with the Spain international's shot-stopping ability—a quality that is becoming a regular feature at United.
Arguably his best stop came with an excellent save on 50 minutes to deny former teammate Danny Welbeck from a tight angle after prolonged pressure from the Gunners.
De Gea's perception in cutting off the angle for the England striker was outstanding.
Furthermore, with his superb commanding of the 18-yard box, United's back line could rest assured that it had a confident presence behind it—this was paramount, given the players' varied experience levels.
Much is made of outfield players taking the game by the scruff of the neck and dragging their side to victory, but against Arsenal this quality can be attributed to De Gea.
The one blot on De Gea's copybook at the Emirates arrived deep into stoppage time with Giroud's goal.
"Olivier Giroud's goal. #Arsenal https://t.co/cPo50KDHz9
— Arsenal (@Goonerz1886) November 22, 2014"
Managing to get a hand to the Arsenal striker's unpredictable, swerving strike, De Gea was unable to force it wide of the post. However, it would be hugely critical to suggest that the goalkeeper should have saved that particular attempt.
Despite a monstrous performance, De Gea's manager was typically restrained with his post-match praise:
However, while the goalkeeper is rightly not yet the finished article, De Gea is the one player Van Gaal should be nailing his colours to.
The No. 1 is the one constant he has truly been able to rely on so far this season.
Van Gaal's One Constant
To succinctly outline the challenges both Van Gaal and De Gea have faced so far this season in establishing consistency, you only have to look as far as United's defence against Arsenal.
A back line of Luke Shaw (swiftly replaced by Ashley Young), Tyler Blackett, Chris Smalling, Paddy McNair and Antonio Valencia is far from the manager's first-choice defence.
Smalling was the most experienced defender in the side against Arsenal, and his praise of De Gea as a "reassuring" presence outlines just how important the goalkeeper has been.
Shaw's injury at the Emirates was the 40th United has suffered in Van Gaal's four months as manager at Old Trafford, per Ben Nagle of the Daily Mail.
Luckily, De Gea recovered from his contribution to that statistic—a dislocated finger suffered on international duty with Spain—in order to return against Arsenal.
Talking to BBC Sport after the game, Van Gaal bemoaned this veritable crisis, saying, "I hope the players are coming back from injuries because it's unbelievably difficult to create the consistency in the team - because I have to change my line-up every week."
Van Gaal continued by saying, "I am a coach who always has the same line-up. Maybe I change one or two, but not constantly so many players. ... It is not always good to create optimism in the team."
De Gea has played every minute of every league game so far this season for United.
Chelsea's Thibaut Courtois is regularly feted as the best goalkeeper in the Premier League, but the Belgian is blessed with a consistent back four.
Against Arsenal, David de Gea once more proved his credentials. And by providing consistency to Louis van Gaal's shaky back line at Manchester United, he proves an able contender for the league's best.
Statistics via WhoScored.com and Squawka.com.
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