Danny Murphy insists Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea is not undroppable – and recalls when Steven Gerrard and Michael Owen suffered the same fate at Liverpool.
De Gea is widely considered the world’s best goalkeeper, but three huge mistakes in United’s last four games have raised serious questions about his place in the Red Devils’ starting XI.
Chelsea were the latest club to benefit when the Spaniard spilled at the feet of Marcos Alonso during Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.
The costly mistake, which follows high-profile errors against Barcelona and Manchester City, put a huge dent in United’s slim top-four hopes – and Murphy suggests it might be time to take De Gea out the firing line.
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De Gea’s mistake proved costly
He told talkSPORT: “It was a really bad mistake; it changed the dynamic of the game and deflated Manchester United.
“It brings up a wider point: is any player undroppable? You should never ever be in a position where a player is undroppable.
“De Gea has a year left on his contract and we don’t know whether he wants to leave or whether he wants to stay.
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“He needs to have a conversation with his manager. If he says, ‘I’m in, I’m close to signing, I want to be here’, then you leave him in.
“If he wants to leave, then maybe it’s time to take him out of the firing line.”
Murphy believes a ‘kick up the backside’ can have a positive effect on performance levels – just like it did when former Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier dropped Gerrard and Owen.
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Murphy remembers when Owen and Gerrard were dropped at Liverpool
In their prime, the two former England stars were considered untouchable at Anfield, but neither were immune to the bench.
Murphy continued: “I remember Michael Owen being left out of the League Cup final. Robbie Fowler and Emile Heskey played up front.
“Michael was fuming and rightly so because he was the man at the time. He came back and ended up scoring two in the FA Cup final and one in the UEFA Cup final.
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“That says sometimes a kick up the backside can work.
“Another time, we had to go to Basel in our Champions League group. We were 3-0 down at half-time and Gerard Houllier came in and I was sat with Stevie G.
“Houlier said to him, ‘Have a shower, you’ve had enough’ and he left him out for the next few weeks.”
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