Manchester United striker Michael Owen has come to the defence of team-mate David De Gea, stating that recent criticism of the goalkeeper has been unfair.
The young Spanish stopper has not lived up to expectations after his big-money summer move from Atletico Madrid, and has been blamed for Liverpool‘s goals in The Red Devils’ 2-1 defeat at Anfield on Saturday.
However, Owen believes that goals from Daniel Agger and Dirk Kuyt were not De Gea’s fault, and that the goalkeeper will come good at Old Trafford.
“One comment on yesterday’s game. Don’t agree with all this negativity towards De Gea,” the veteran attacker said on Twitter.
“Admittedly he has made a couple of mistakes this season but listening to some people you would think he had a nightmare yesterday.
“I’m not having either goal was his fault. The problem is, once you get labelled, mud sticks and now any tiny mistake is magnified. Other keepers make similar mistakes and nothing gets said.
“The ball was on the 6 yard box for the first goal. He has to go for it. He also needs to watch the flight of the ball. There is then 6 players in front of him. There is nothing he could do. The free header was the problem, not the keeper.
“He couldn’t do much with the second goal either. Is the problem not just a case of us not winning the first ball and not picking up a runner?
“In my opinion two bad goals to give away but to blame everything on the keeper is totally wrong. The lad will be a top keeper, he is only young. Harsh to blame him for everything,” he concluded.
De Gea is currently locked in a battle with Anders Lindegaard to become Edwin van der Sar’s long-term successor.
By Gareth McKnight
Football News 24/7
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