SAID Benrahma’s shot was so tame that a groan had started to emanate from the West Ham fans inside the London Stadium. Nobody foresaw that the 30-yard trundler would end up in the back of the Manchester United net, but David de Gea somehow allowed the ball to pass through his hands. It was an almost unexplainable blunder.

De Gea has had to explain a number of howlers this season. There was the one against Brentford in United’s second game of the campaign when the Spaniard failed to stop a similarly harmless shot from distance. Then there was the error of judgement in the Europa League quarter-finals which saw de Gea left his goal completely empty for Sevilla to score.

This is without even mentioning the numerous times de Gea’s weakness in playing out from the back has cost Manchester United this season. In the past, though, this deficiency could be overlooked due to the 32-year-old’s excellence as a shot-stopper and orthodox goalkeeper. This, however, is no longer the case.

It’s clear Manchester United need a new first-choice goalkeeper to make further progress under Erik Ten Hag. The Dutchman has compromised on his usual approach to accommodate de Gea, but the Spaniard isn’t upholding on his end of the bargain, conceding goals any goalkeeper of his calibre should be able to stop.

Goalkeepers make mistakes, it’s just part of the job. De Gea, however, has made the joint-most mistakes leading to goals (four) of any player in the Premier League this season. A blunder every so often can be excused, but the 32-year-old has cost Manchester United points. This could have a direct impact on whether or not they finish in the top four.

“He has the most clean sheets in the league so we would not be here in this position without him,” Ten Hag insisted in defence of de Gea after the 1-0 defeat to West Ham. “He fully has my belief. No concerns with him. It happens but as a team you have to deal with it, show character, be resilient and bounce back. We want him to stay and extend his contract.”

Despite Ten Hag offering his public backing, it should be noted he has done similar to Harry Maguire numerous times this season and this hasn’t stopped the England defender from dropping down the pecking order. What Ten Hag says and what he does are frequently two very different things.

Ten Hag surely recognises the need to upgrade on de Gea. At Ajax, Andre Onana was crucial to the way they built attacks through his use of possession. Most elite level clubs now have a goalkeeper who can contribute on the ball in some form, making de Gea something of an oddity. Finding a ball-playing replacement could elevate United’s attacking standard.

Recent reports claim Manchester United want to keep de Gea at the club with talks on a contract extension ongoing. This would likely see de Gea, currently the club’s top-earner on £375,000-a-week, take a wage cut, but United would surely be better served using this money to sign a long-term successor.

Only Jordan Pickford has more errors leading to goals than David de Gea in the last five Premier League seasons 😮 pic.twitter.com/WGXfmNiiMr

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) May 7, 2023

David Raya, for instance, will be out of contract at Brentford this summer and would give Manchester United the ball-playing goalkeeper Ten Hag clearly favours. Porto’s Diogo Costa has also been linked with a summer switch to Old Trafford and would similarly fit the bill. There are options out there.

Of course, Manchester United also desperately need a new number nine and so Ten Hag might have to prioritise in the summer transfer window. Whether it happens this summer or in a future transfer window, though, de Gea’s career at Old Trafford must be considered as good as over. United will be be held back as long as he is still their number one.