United off the market for Everton star

Manchester United have been trying to pin down goalkeeper David De Gea to a contract extension for some time now, and were concerned that he would walk off as a free agent at the end of the season.

While the player’s camp haven’t revealed what they are planning, De Gea had been linked with a who’s who of European football clubs. Meanwhile, the Red Devils were apparently looking for a replacement with Everton’s Jordan Pickford and Atlético Madrid’s Jan Oblak the top candidates. In recent days Real Madrid backup Keylor Navas had also been mooted.

However, today it appears United have triggered a one-year extension clause that will now keep the goaltender at Old Trafford through till the end of the 2019-20 season. This should mean that the Manchester club should leave Everton in peace for another year at the very least.

Pickford has seen a meteoric rise in his career over the last couple of years, which saw him transfer to the Toffees from Sunderland for £30 million at the beginning of last season, win a spot in the England national team and eventually take over the starting role for the Three Lions at the 2018 World Cup. Everton had already fended off approaches for their keeper from Chelsea last summer and appeared to be gearing up for another round of rumours.

De Gea has indicated he is unhappy with his current deal and has asked the club to raise his wages to be more in line with players like Alexis Sanchez who is at £350,000 a week.