Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has hit out at the Old Trafford side over their management of David de Gea’s contract situation.
The goalkeeper has been linked with Real Madrid all summer long but the Red Devils want a world record transfer fee for a keeper in order to allow him his wish to return to the Spanish capital.
But with just one year left on his deal, Real are unwilling to pay over the odds, knowing that they can get him on a Bosman transfer next summer. De Gea is believed to be ready to return to Spain and would want to discuss a move to Real in January – when he is free to talk to other clubs – should he not move this summer.
And speaking on Sky Sports, Neville, who played his whole career at Old Trafford, said the keeper should not have been allowed to run down his deal.
“This has been badly managed by Manchester United, make no mistake about that, to allow a player of his quality not to extend a couple of years ago. He had those couple of dodgy seasons at the start when he was a young, inexperienced goalkeeper adapting to a new country, but under David Moyes he showed real promise,” he commented.
And he added: “The question has to be asked why wasn’t [his contract] extended in that period? To allow his contract to get to this situation is poor management. And now United are paying for it.”
