Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea has said he is confident his contract stand-off with the club will end “in a good way.”
De Gea’s deal at Old Trafford is set to expire at the end of the season, and United have an option to extend it by another year. Sources have told ESPN the club have chosen instead to start negotiations over a longer agreement.
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However, if fresh terms are not agreed and United do not trigger his extension, De Gea could leave for free in the summer, although the 32-year-old said he expects to stay.
“I’m very relaxed,” De Gea said after the 3-0 win over Bournemouth on Tuesday.
“I’m just focused on training, perform as best as I can. But, for sure, it’s going to end in a good way.”
De Gea has made more than 500 appearances for United since arriving from Atletico Madrid in 2011.
Sources have told ESPN that United are in talks about a deal for Jack Butland to provide backup for De Gea, with Martin Dubravka having returned to Newcastle United after his season-long loan was cut short.
Ten Hag is keen to bolster his goalkeeper department in January, but De Gea remains his No. 1 and the goalkeeper said he wants to stay at the club for the rest of his career.
“I hope so,” he added. “I was saying this is my club. I’ve been here many, many years and it’s a huge honour to be here and I’m so happy here.”
De Gea kept a third clean sheet in a row in the win over Bournemouth and was praised by Ten Hag afterwards following a string of saves in the second half.
United have not conceded a Premier League goal at Old Trafford since September and have not lost a league game at home since the opening day of the season.
“That’s how it should be to come here,” De Gea said.
“It should be a tough place for the teams, let’s see in the future. We are playing really well, we have to keep the momentum as much as we can and prepare every game as a final and recover well. We have to recover really well because we play a lot of games [this month].”
