da poker： Even though we’ve seemingly seen the last of the Raheem Sterling transfer saga, there’s still one episode dragging away, threatening to flatline the football world’s collective pulse with its sheer tedium… David de Gea to Real Madrid. As it stands, the move appears to be a ‘when’ rather than an ‘if’, but the fact remains that the Spaniard is still a United player and with both clubs looking to get the deal that most appeals to them, it could well push through July and into August.
da bet7k： When De Gea does leave (come on, it’s gonna happen) United will be left with a massive gap in their ranks. The glovesman was their best player last season, and replacing a goalkeeper isn’t always the easiest of tasks, as the Red Devils know from past quests to do just that. Experienced winter arrival Victor Valdes appears to be the man in the frame to step in – his agent has even played down recent transfer links – but is the 33-year-old 20-cap Spain international actually good enough? We at FFC Towers have our doubts, and we believe that Louis van Gaal should be looking rather seriously at the transfer market as a result of the following FIVE reasons.
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Fitness issues
When he arrived at United over the winter, Valdes had been a free agent for over six months. A serious knee injury saw him sit out the final period of his Barcelona contract, before a proposed switch to big spending Ligue 1 giants Monaco fell through due to those fitness concerns.
It would be silly to suggest that United didn’t do their homework when snapping up Valdes – after all, he trained with them for some time before penning a contract – but can he be relied upon to maintain 100% fitness for a whole season? Perhaps not. Anterior Cruciate Ligament injuries are bad news for footballers of any position. The demands on the knee joint are massive within the game, and although goalkeepers are rarely sprinting and/or twisting, a weakening of the fibres is far from ideal, and ACL problems have a nasty habit of recurring.
At 32, the age he was when he suffered the set-back in a 3-0 win against Celta Vigo, Valdes’ powers of recovery were not as powerful as, for example, a 25-year-old, so there are question marks surrounding what long-term impact the tear will have.
Hasn’t played with any regularity for well over a year
With his ACL tear occurring in March 2014, Valdes was forced to wait over a year for his next competitive outing – and only then was he drafted in due to a De Gea injury. He promptly conceded a bizarre deflected cross goal, but was kept in for the final game of the season against Hull, in which he impressed with his shot-stopping, even if his command of his area for crosses was suspect.
There is no telling how much of an impact in terms of his mentality the spell away from the action will have had, and maybe Valdes will have lost his edge. Although a proven winner in the past, can Louis van Gaal really afford to gamble?
Longevity of his career
By the halfway point of the season Valdes will be 34. Although goalkeepers can, and have, played on into their late 30s, is Valdes a truly long-term option? He is a good, experienced player to have in reserve, but surely United should be looking at a stopper in his early/mid 20s to build around, as they will once again be facing the prospect of a finding a new No.1 in just a few years’ time. Right now the project and money on offer at Old Trafford may make the club more appealing than ever.
Is he actually that good?
Well, is he? Much of Valdes’ career has been spent playing for, arguably, the best club team on the planet. Barca weren’t utterly convincing in the early 2000s when he made his breakthrough, but the Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi eras have made opposing teams so frightened of their powers in attack that they rarely look to take them on in a blow-for-blow game.
As a result, much of the close of Valdes’ Barca career was spent playing behind a rarely troubled backline, pulling off occasional saves. At United, though, the likes of Phil Jones and Chris Smalling are unlikely to form an impenetrable wall, and the 33-year-old, as De Gea was, will be forced to face a barrage of shots, crosses and one-on-ones. Will he be able to come close to filling his young compatriot’s gloves? Doubtful.
Rivals all have better options
Chelsea: Thibaut Courtois. Arsenal: Petr Cech. Manchester City: Joe Hart. The big boys in the title race all have goalkeepers of undoubted superior quality, with Jose Mourinho’s Blues even possessing a back-up in the shape of Asmir Begovic with much more Premier League experience and, arguably, quality than Valdes.
Even top four rivals such as Liverpool, perhaps, have a better stopper in Simon Mignolet – whose performances over the latter half of the 2014/15 season were among the best of any goalie in England – while Spurs possess Hugo Lloris.