Chelsea should use Manchester United’s goalkeeper dilemma over David de Gea and Dean Henderson to their advantage and lure the latter to Stamford Bridge.
According to a report from the Sun, Dean Henderson, who spent the last two seasons on loan at Sheffield United, has handed Manchester United an ultimatum: either make him No.1 ahead of De Gea or sell him.
The report also mentioned that Chelsea are among the teams monitoring the situation and are ready to double the 23-year-old’s wages should he join them.
Henderson’s reported demand is actually sensible, considering his form at Sheffield United.
He recorded the joint third-most clean sheets in the Premier League last season (13), level with the likes of Liverpool’s Alisson and De Gea despite playing for a recently promoted team.
Henderson also ranked third in terms of save percentage (75.2% – FBref), just below Tottenham Hotspur’s Hugo Lloris (79.6%) and Arsenal’s Bernd Leno (77.6%) which put him above De Gea (ranked fifth – 73.6%).
A repeat of Cech – Courtois situation?
Chelsea were in a similar situation five years ago when they had to choose between Thibaut Courtois and Petr Cech.
They eventually promoted the younger Belgium international and allowed the latter to join their rivals Arsenal.
However, unlike Chelsea, who had the relatively easy task of offloading Cech, Manchester United would likely have a hard time in trying to find buyers for De Gea.
The Spain international recently signed a new four-year deal (until 2023), which sees him earn £350,000-a-week (the Guardian).
Considering the current transfer climate, any interested team would likely be reluctant to pay his wages, leaving United in a difficult position.
Should they decide to sell Henderson, it would be ideal for Chelsea given Frank Lampard’s apparent lack of confidence in Kepa Arrizabalaga and his reported desire to find a new goalkeeper.
Convincing Manchester United to sell one of the best young goalkeepers in the Premier League to rivals would not be easy, but also far from impossible.
Chelsea and United have been involved in several transfers including Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic, although the last time a player went from Manchester to Chelsea was Juan Sebastian Veron in 2003.