David de Gea could accept the offer of a new long-term contract at Manchester United after the spectacular collapse of his proposed move to Real Madrid on Monday.
The goalkeeper looked destined to join the 10-time European champions in a £29 million deal on the final day of the Spanish transfer window but Madrid submitted the final paperwork for the move 28 minutes after the deadline, leaving the move in
tatters, and the two clubs have since blamed
each other for the mix-up.
Since Monday's episode De Gea, who was said to be hugely disheartened by the failure of the two clubs to get the deal done, has been in regulars contact with his agent, Jorge Mendes, to discuss the possibility of signing a new contract at Old Trafford in a bid to protect his international future.
United originally raised the possibility of a new deal during the 2014-15 season, only for Mendes to insist that De Gea's plan was to leave the club rather than sign again at Old Trafford.
But De Gea has yet to feature this season for United after manager Louis van Gaal deemed the 24-year-old to be lacking in focus amid the constant links with Madrid, and Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has since warned that the keeper cannot expect to be picked for his national side in the lead-up to next summer's Euro 2016 finals if he is not playing regular club football.
As a result De Gea has apparently softened
in his stance towards United, and he could
agree to a new deal in light of his expiring
contract having just 10 months to run.
Such a move could jeopardise any hope he
has of eventually signing for Real given the
current relationship between the two clubs,
but De Gea and Mendes are now said to be
very much focusing on the immediate issue
of the player's desire to play football.
A renewal for De Gea would also give Keylor
Navas - who was due to join United as part
of the transfer - further time to establish
himself as Madrid's first choice, allowing
him the opportunity to win the affections of
the Santiago Bernabeu public as club legend
Iker Casillas' successor.
De Gea is currently on international duty with
Spain ahead of their Euro 2016 qualifiers
against Slovakia on Saturday and Macedonia
on Tuesday, and the former Atletico Madrid
goalkeeper spent much of Tuesday chatting
to club and international colleague Juan
Mata in an attempt to clear his mind after
Monday's dramatic turn of events.
And in a press conference on Wednesday,
coach Del Bosque confirmed that De Gea's
mood has lightened since arriving with La
Roja.
"He is calm," Del Bosque insisted. "He is a
couple of days removed from it all now. Now
he is focused on the national team and he is
being very professional. It is good for him to
be here. His personality could even benefit
from this because in times of stress you can
come out performing much better."
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