Now that the summer transfer window has finally closed, one former Man United star will be acutely aware of what options now remain open to him, given that he wasn’t able to secure a switch to a European giant.
Much like Hugo Lloris at Tottenham, it appears that David de Gea wasn’t interested in having to fight for the No.1 jersey elsewhere in Europe.
A guaranteed starting spot looks to be the driver in the Spaniard’s thinking and, whilst that’s perfectly understandable, that has also limited his options significantly now that the window has shut across Europe.
According to MARCA (h/t Football Espana), de Gea could now consider a move to the Saudi Pro League if his wage demands are met.
That’s unlikely to be a problem for the various paymasters in the Middle Eastern league, even if the 32-year-old wants to retain the £375,000 per week salary (via Capology) that he had at the Red Devils.
The real question mark is over the quality of the football in the league, with a number of players that have not yet reached a certain age deciding to stay in Europe.
Though it is quickly moving away from being a perceived ‘retirement league,’ given that the Pro League have managed to poach a number of high quality additions across the summer, there’s no doubt that the standard falls well below that of European football.
However, with the latter option no longer open to de Gea, he has a big career decision to make.