Saturday, April 20, 2013

First impressions: Fergie tells David de Gea he is Manchester United 's No. 1 - Mirror.co.uk

The 22-year-old Spaniard has struggled to come to terms with the physical ­nature of English football since his £17million arrival from Atletico Madrid in the ­summer of 2011.

But Ferguson believes De Gea has come of age in recent months and that the battering he received at West Ham in midweek proves he is now battled hardened for the Premier League.

"He has really ­improved this season, especially the physical part of his game and he can deal with things much better than he could when he first came here.

"I think even referees viewed him as a young Spanish player who needed to toughen up and he didn't get any ­protection at all.

"But you can see maturity in him now. The physical stuff doesn't bother him. He can handle it. De Gea took a real ­buffeting at West Ham but it didn't affect him at all. He was really composed in what he did.

There were reports earlier this season that Real Madrid wanted to take De Gea back to Spain, while United have also been monitoring Stoke's Bosnian goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

But Ferguson believes that the Spaniard has now been though the same toughening-up process that Peter Schmeichel endured two ­decades ago.

"Steely kept reminding David that he is a top player and he has responded to the physical part by putting on almost a stone in pure muscle.

"We warned David when he signed what he could expect because it was the same with Schmeichel, who was 27-years-old and a big, strong lad when he came here.

"We do a lot of crossing with the ­goalkeepers in training, but you don't want players crashing into one another in training."

The Manchester United boss said: "I hope Wigan win it – and not because it would be at City's ­expense. In Dave Whelan they have an owner who has not only shown great faith in his manager, but someone who invests so much ­emotionally in his club.

Via: [Live Football] CA Tigre - Argentinos Juniors - Argentine football

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