Manchester United have reportedly asked David de Gea not to join another club despite the Spaniard becoming a free agent at midnight when his contract expires.
The goalkeeper, who moved to Old Trafford from Atletico Madrid in 2011, had agreed an extension on reduced terms only for United to withdraw the offer at the eleventh hour.
Erik ten Hag has reservations about continuing with De Gea as his first choice keeper, with the 32-year-old making several high-profile mistakes last season and also lacking the ball-playing skills the manager requires.
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But, United have a limited transfer budget this summer and there are huge question marks over whether they can afford to sign a new goalkeeper.
Ideally, Ten Hag would like to sign Inter keeper Andre Onana – with the duo having worked together at Ajax – but he will cost as much as £50m.
There have also been links with Porto’s Diogo Costa and Brentford’s David Raya, but now the goalkeeper situation at Man United is in a state of limbo.
According to The Sun, club officials have asked De Gea not to sign for another team even though they are looking for a replacement and could perform a U-turn over the Spaniard’s future.
If United cannot sign a new goalkeeper, they are willing to return with a new offer for De Gea – but it will be on an even smaller salary than the reduced terms he had reluctantly agreed to.
The Daily Mail are reporting that United will hold face-to-face talks with De Gea next week but will have no contact in the coming days as he is marrying his partner Edurne Garcia this weekend.
On Friday, United confirmed all the players who were returning to the club from loans, leaving on free transfers or returning to their parent clubs – such as Weghorst and Marcel Sabitzer.
Reference was also made to De Gea, with the statement saying his contract ‘is due to run out but discussions remain open with the long-serving keeper’.
