There is a new rumor circulating about Manchester United’s pursuit of a goalkeeper. Erik ten Hag is now seriously considering the option of recruiting Dominik Livakovic in the upcoming summer season.
Manchester United is reportedly in search of a new goalkeeper in the upcoming summer season. The Red Devils need a competitor as well as a successor to David De Gea, whose performance has been declining.
Manchester United is said to have mapped out several options for their new goalkeeper. However, there are no clear signs yet as to which goalkeeper Ten Hag will bring in.
Quoting The Sun’s report, Manchester United already has a strong candidate for the position. The Red Devils are interested in securing the services of Dominik Livakovic from Dinamo Zagreb.
According to the report, Erik ten Hag was impressed by Livakovic’s performance in the 2022 World Cup.
The goalkeeper, who was trusted as the first-choice goalkeeper for the Croatian national team, performed brilliantly. He successfully led his country to finish third in the prestigious tournament.
After that, Ten Hag requested that Manchester United’s talent scouts monitor Livakovic’s performance at Dinamo Zagreb, and they were impressed with the goalkeeper’s performance.
The report also claims that Manchester United is interested in signing Livakovic due to the transfer fee involved.
The goalkeeper is rumored to be available for just 10 million euros. This is because his contract is nearing its end at Zagreb.
This price fits well within Manchester United’s transfer budget, as they will allocate their transfer funds to buy new strikers and midfielders. Therefore, they cannot spend a lot of money on a new goalkeeper.
According to the same report, Manchester United also has another option they are pursuing.
One of them is the goalkeeper of the Portuguese national team, Diogo Costa, who is also said to have caught Ten Hag’s attention.
Erik Ten Hag once again defended David De Gea. He did not want to blame the goalkeeper for his team’s defeat in the 2022/2023 FA Cup final.
Manchester United’s dream of ending the 2022/2023 season with the FA Cup trophy was shattered. The Red Devils were defeated by their neighbors, Manchester City, with a score of 2-1 at Wembley.
Many blamed De Gea as the cause of Manchester United’s defeat. It was believed that he could have saved Ilkay Gundogan’s two goals, but he failed to do so.
Erik Ten Hag was asked for his comments on De Gea’s performance in the final. However, the manager refused to blame his reliable goalkeeper.
After the match at Wembley, Erik Ten Hag refused to blame De Gea for his team’s defeat in the final.
He believed that his team, including De Gea, had fought hard, so he did not want to blame the goalkeeper for the loss.
“For now, I don’t want to talk about any criticism because we have played well throughout this season, including David. He has played fantastically this season,” Ten Hag said to Sportsmole.
Ten Hag himself believes that the defeat in the FA Cup final is not something that Manchester United should dwell on.
He said that this defeat is a learning experience for his team, and he believes that they are moving in the right direction.
“I think with what we have done so far, we are moving in the right direction,” he added.
In his pre-final interview, Ten Hag commented on De Gea.
He stated that the goalkeeper would not be guaranteed the position of the first-choice goalkeeper for Manchester United next season.
David de Gea’s position as Manchester United’s first-choice goalkeeper is increasingly threatened. The Red Devils have considered bringing in a big name to replace the Spanish goalkeeper.
Despite discussions for a contract extension, De Gea could lose his position as the main goalkeeper for the next season. The 32-year-old goalkeeper’s performance has been declining and has often been blamed for several defeats.
Although he won the award for the goalkeeper with the most clean sheets in the 2022/2023 Premier League season, United cannot rely on the goalkeeper due to his inconsistent performance. Therefore, a new name is needed to compete for the position of Manchester United’s first-choice goalkeeper.
For that reason, there are four potential names that United could bring in to replace De Gea next season. Who are these players? Let’s find out below, Bolaneters!
The first goalkeeper who is rumored to replace De Gea is Diogo Costa. The 23-year-old goalkeeper is considered one of the keys to Porto’s success this season.
Costa has played in 42 club-level matches this season, keeping 21 clean sheets and conceding 30 goals. He has played for a total of 3,780 minutes and has been a reliable option under the goalposts for Porto.
United has been targeting the future goalkeeper of the Portuguese national team for a long time and will engage in serious negotiations to bring him in this season.
The cost that The Red Devils would have to pay to bring in Costa is around 45 million euros, and this price could change considering the player still has a long contract.
The next goalkeeper who could be an option to replace De Gea is David Raya. Brentford, Raya’s club, has confirmed that they are open to anyone who wants to sign the goalkeeper since The Bees have found a replacement goalkeeper in Mark Flekken.
Raya has performed impressively in the Premier League this season, keeping 12 clean sheets and conceding 46 goals in 38 matches. In addition, the Spanish national team goalkeeper has been recognized as the goalkeeper with the most saves, making 154 saves.
At the national team level, Raya managed to displace De Gea from the position of the Spanish national team goalkeeper in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
With the possibility of leaving, United has a great chance to sign the 27-year-old goalkeeper for a fee of 25 million euros. Erik ten Hag has also shown interest and is preparing to use his services next season.
The third name is Aston Villa’s first-choice goalkeeper, Emiliano Martinez. The winner of the Best Goalkeeper award at the 2022 FIFA World Cup has performed well in the league competition with The Villans this season.
The goalkeeper, often referred to as Emi, has recorded 13 clean sheets and conceded 38 goals in 36 appearances in the Premier League this season. He has been a constant presence under the goalposts for Unai Emery, accumulating 3,140 minutes of play.
The 30-year-old goalkeeper has been linked with a move to United since the beginning of last season. With De Gea’s inconsistent performances, this could be the right moment for Emi to replace him.
Aston Villa, however, has no intention of letting go of the player because Emery idolizes the Argentine national team star. Nevertheless, United could acquire him for a fee of around 28 million euros, in line with his market value.
However, it should be noted that this amount could increase as Emi still has four years remaining on his contract.
The last potential candidate to replace De Gea as Manchester United’s first-choice goalkeeper next season is Yann Sommer. The Bayern Munich goalkeeper has successfully filled in for Die Roten since Manuel Neuer’s injury.
The 34-year-old goalkeeper has played in 19 Bundesliga matches for Bayern, keeping five clean sheets and conceding 25 goals.
With Neuer’s return from injury, Sommer’s position at the club is in jeopardy. The Swiss national team veteran goalkeeper is unlikely to be willing to be a backup goalkeeper under Neuer and would prefer to leave.
If interested, Ten Hag could use Sommer’s services to provide temporary competition for De Gea while searching for other goalkeeper candidates.
The cost that United would have to bear is not high either, as Bayern has set a price of around 10 million euros for anyone who wants to sign Sommer.
Out of these four names, who will actually land at Old Trafford? Or will De Gea maintain his position as the number one choice under the goalposts for the next season? It will be interesting to follow.
