The last day of the summer transfer window always a big day in English soccer, bringing all of the surprises, left-turns, and last-minute decisions that we have come to expect from deadline day. This year's deadline day begat a number of notable headlines, from Manchester City's lofty summer spending total, to Man United's expensive signing of relative unknown Anthony Martial. Perhaps the biggest shocker of deadline day, though, was that the David de Gea transfer to Real Madrid fails, and in epic fashion no less.
The Botched de Gea Deal: A History of Events
First, some background. David de Gea, while he's been playing at Old Trafford since 2011, was born and raised in Spain, and actually came up through the Atletico Madrid youth program before playing for the Mattress Makers at the senior level for two years. Even when he was being courted by the Red Devils, de Gea was reportedly a noted prospect for Real Madrid, who were considering the young goalkeeper as an eventual replacement for veteran and football club captain, Iker Casillas.
Even after Man United hit a rough patch (falling from first place in the 2012 2013 Premier League to seventh place in 2013 2014), de Gea retained his place in goal. But with Casillas in his 30s and Real Madrid struggling to clinch an elusive La Liga title, the Vikings continued to show interest in de Gea, and David reciprocated that interest. At first, he just refused contract renewals and extensions from Man United; eventually, he actually told club officials that he wanted to leave England and join Real Madrid. Manchester boss Louis van Gaal responded by excluding him from the lineup for the first games of the 2015 2016 football season.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, forced Iker Casillas out. He found a new home at Porto, leaving Real as the second most capped player in football club history-both in league (510) and overall (725). The Vikings were ready to go with David de Gea, but the 24-year-old Spaniard was still contractually bound to wear the Manchester United goalkeeper jersey 2015 2016 for another year. The Red Devils, meanwhile, demanded a big transfer fee (and a bargaining chip, in the form of defender Sergio Ramos) from Real Madrid-even though they knew that de Gea could easily have just waited a year and then left England on a free transfer.
The Offer
For awhile, it seemed like Real Madrid were just going to wait it out, letting David de Gea run out his contract at Manchester United, and then give him a big signing bonus next summer to encourage a move back to Spain. Then, on August 31st, the eve of deadline day, the Vikings finally made their first (and only) official offer: £29 million (plus the transfer of Keylor Navas, himself a skilled goalkeeper) to bring David de Gea to Santiago Bernebeu. It wasn't as much money as the Red Devils had wanted, and Navas wasn't Sergio Ramos (who Real Madrid nailed down with a contract renewal and a notable pay raise), but it was a good deal. Manchester United accepted.
Right now, it's tough to say who is to blame for the collapse of the deal. Both Real Madrid and Manchester United are pointing fingers at one another: Real say that they received documentation from United too late to file the transfer; United claim they also didn't receive necessary paperwork in a timely fashion, but still managed to file the documentation in time. Many Real fans are even suggesting that United wanted to "stick it" to Real Madrid for denying them Ramos. Regardless of what is true or false, it's clear that these two soccer clubs are not at all happy with one another, and David de Gea and Keylor Navas are caught right in the middle of it.
What do you think? Are you happy to learn that the talented de Gea will be back to don the Manchester United goalkeeper jersey this season? Or you think United intentionally blew up their own transfer deal? Chat with other football fans by linking up with Soccer Box on social media! You can find us on several networks including Facebook, Pinterest, and Tumblr.
