Cristiano Ronaldo is on recruitment duties for his club Al-Nassr as the latest reports speculate that the Portuguese forward is tempting, free agent and former teammate, David de Gea to move to Saudi Arabia. The Spanish goalkeeper has been without a club since his departure from Manchester United in the summer, and finding it hard to find a new club in Europe.
As per 90min, David de Gea prefers to stay in Europe and has declined the proposal of Cristiano Ronaldo to join him at Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.
David de Gea is currently a free agent, allowing him to join any club outside the transfer window. However, Al-Nassr already has three goalkeepers in its ranks including David Ospina, Nawaf Al-Aqidi and Raghed Al-Najjar.
🚨 Cristiano Ronaldo has been attempting to persuade former Manchester United team-mate David De Gea to join him at Al-Nassr but the Spaniard would prefer to stay in Europe.
(Source: 90min) pic.twitter.com/j6q3VgytTw
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) September 23, 2023
Nawaf has become a fan favorite since the injury of David Ospina, who has been out with an elbow injury since January 2023. Furthermore, there are only eight foreign players allowed in a squad of teams playing in the Saudi league, and Al-Nassr has already reached this limit.
All these factors point to the fact that for David de Gea to join Al-Nassr, they need to either sell David Ospina in January or wait for his contract to expire in the summer of 2024.
🚨 | David de Gea ‘may retire’ if no club meet his specific requirement. pic.twitter.com/LiFvNVXhpk
— SPORTbible (@sportbible) September 22, 2023
Meanwhile, the online discussions have turned negative towards the Spanish goalkeeper in light of these reports. Fans have questioned the reasoning behind the goalkeeper’s decision to stay in Europe. Comments like “Who wants him in Europe,” “That will be good move for him” and “Common L For De Gea” echoed the sentiments from fans regarding his future in Europe.
David de Gea wanted to stay in Europe to live with his pop star wife
David de Gea’s potential move to Al-Nassr faces more roadblocks than just internal squad issues of Al-Nassr. The goalkeeper is leaning towards staying in Europe after his marriage in the summer.
David de Gea married Edurne Almagro in July 2023 and the couple has decided to settle in Spain after spending several years in Manchester. This decision is a contributing factor in his rejection of a move to Saudi Arabia.
🚨 Manchester United stars are still angry at the club for the way they treated goalkeeper David De Gea.
(Source: @SunSport) pic.twitter.com/xhyGWxlYzA
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) September 22, 2023
During the summer, David de Gea missed out on some high-profile destinations, including Real Madrid, Real Betis, Al-Hilal, and Sevilla. The situation with Real Betis and Real Madrid was peculiar, as David de Gea could have been an upgrade for both sides. However, Betis chose to stick with Claudio Bravo and Rui Silva while Real Madrid opted for Kepa Arrizabalaga to replace the injured Thibaut Courtois.
The Spanish goalkeeper was earning $460,000 per week at Manchester United and with an abundance of goalkeeping talent available in Europe. It’s highly unlike that any team outside Saudi Arabia would prefer to sign the free agent during the current season.
