Gary Neville expresses concern over Manchester United star

Manchester United legend-turned-pundit Gary Neville has said that David de Gea has become unsettled at the Red Devils amid the contract negotiations ongoing with the club. The Spain international has just 14 months remaining on his current deal and so far, there has been no indication that his contract will be extended beyond that period.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Neville said that a number of United players have looked poor on the field of late. He added that De Gea has looked a different player with goalkeeping mistakes in the past few weeks and this can be attributed to the discussions over his future with the club, he quipped: “De Gea looks nothing like himself. He looks distracted. You have got contract talks going on with five, six or seven players which is obviously distracting at this moment in time.

De Gea has been one of United’s most consistent performers over the past five years where he has won the club’s Player of the Year accolade on four occasions. However, the current campaign has brought a different side of his game and he has been guilty of making high-profile errors, which have cost the team at different stages of the season.

At present, the Red Devils have shown a reluctance to match the player’s £350,000-a-week demands and a similar standoff until the summer may mean that the 28-year-old could be offloaded from the club’s ranks. Paris Saint-Germain and former admirers Real Madrid have been touted as potential destinations and it remains to be seen whether United can find a breakthrough in contract talks before then.

United are currently two points behind the top four of the Premier League and their prospects of making the Champions League remain slim, unless they can improve on the recent performances. The Red Devils are scheduled to face Manchester City and Chelsea during the forthcoming matches and the failure to secure maximum points could put them on the brink of missing out on the top four.