Dwight Yorke has claimed he would not swap Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea for ‘anyone’ and says Erik ten Hag ‘needs to be called out’ over the club’s indifferent form. While United have largely impressed in Ten Hag’s first season at Old Trafford – winning the Carabao Cup and moving into the Champions League spots – their campaign will be viewed very differently if they slip out of the top-four. The Red Devils are currently fourth – two points behind Newcastle United and one above revitalised Liverpool – having lost their last two games 1-0. Overall, Erik ten Hag’s side have lost nine league games this season, more than the team suffered under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2019-20 and 2020-21.
Yorke said: ‘Manchester United losing nine games in the Premier League under Erik ten Hag does raise some issues. If you are a Manchester United manager, you will always be scrutinised for little details or mistakes. There’s nowhere to hide. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had a better record than Ten Hag in his full two seasons managing the club, people talk about the progress we’ve made and the better style of football being played. The disappointing thing in my observation in these games is that Manchester United don’t know how to win ugly, it always has to be a pretty game of football. We rarely win games 1-0, football is not about scoring loads of goals, it’s about getting the results and rolling your sleeves up in certain games, like the West Ham game.’
Yorke has also leaped to the defence of De Gea following the backlash he received after Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to West Ham. Not for the first time this season, De Gea made a howler at the London Stadium, sparking more questions over his long-term future at Old Trafford. De Gea’s current contract is set to expire in the summer but Ten Hag wants the Spaniard to sign a new deal and reports say he is close to putting pen to paper on an extension.
Yorke said: ‘I have not seen any outstanding goalkeepers that are far greater than David de Gea, so I wouldn’t swap him for anyone at the moment, even with the mistakes he’s made recently. I really don’t think there’s many better goalkeepers in the world than De Gea. Is David Raya better than De Gea? I don’t think so. Manchester United will be looking for a better player as well as a character who can come in and deal with the step up of playing for Manchester United. Maybe Dean Henderson can do it, but I’m not so sure.’
Dwight Yorke has claimed he would not swap Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea for ‘anyone’ and believes Erik ten Hag ‘needs to be called out’ over the club’s indifferent form this season. While United have largely impressed in Ten Hag’s first season at Old Trafford – winning the Carabao Cup and moving into the Champions League spots – their campaign will be viewed very differently if they slip out of the top-four. The Red Devils are currently fourth – two points behind Newcastle United and one above revitalised Liverpool – having lost their last two games 1-0. Overall, Erik ten Hag’s side have lost nine league games this season, more than the team suffered under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2019-20 and 2020-21.
Yorke said: ‘Manchester United losing nine games in the Premier League under Erik ten Hag does raise some issues. If you are a Manchester United manager, you will always be scrutinised for little details or mistakes. There’s nowhere to hide. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had a better record than Ten Hag in his full two seasons managing the club, people talk about the progress we’ve made and the better style of football being played. The disappointing thing in my observation in these games is that Manchester United don’t know how to win ugly, it always has to be a pretty game of football. We rarely win games 1-0, football is not about scoring loads of goals, it’s about getting the results and rolling your sleeves up in certain games, like the West Ham game.’
Yorke has also leaped to the defence of De Gea following the backlash he received after Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to West Ham. Not for the first time this season, De Gea made a howler at the London Stadium, sparking more questions over his long-term future at Old Trafford. De Gea’s current