David de Gea has dismissed suggestions that his place at Manchester United is under threat from Victor Valdes, who is reportedly on the verge of signing for the Premier League outfit. The former Barcelona goalkeeper is currently available as a free agent after having left the Catalan club in the summer. He was initially expected to join Monaco, but an anterior cruciate ligament injury towards the end of last season has put him on the sidelines until now. After recovering, he has been surprised to find that Monaco will no longer be able to afford him after going through huge budget cuts.
Valdes has been looking for a new club in the last few months and United have emerged as a surprise destination. De Gea has been performing brilliantly under Louis Van Gaal. His impeccable saves alone have been responsible for rescuing a number of points for the club. The 24-year-old came to United in an £ 18 million deal two years ago. Andres Lindegaard is the current understudy to De Gea, but it is thought that he is extremely unhappy with the lack of first-team opportunities. The Danish goalkeeper may be allowed to leave in January with Valdes coming as his replacement.
Valdes is one of the established names in the game after having won numerous titles with Barcelona. “Yes, my contract runs out in 2016 but they didn’t sign him for that. Victor had a difficult injury, he had a bad time and the boss knows him well and has given him the opportunity to recover there. Victor is training over in Manchester; he’s still not 100 per cent after his injury. When he is fully fit he will start to train with us. He’s still not training in goal with us. From time to time he comes out with the goalkeeping coach but very little still,” said De Gea.