Unless his duties as a new dad were keeping him otherwise engaged, David de Gea would have been watching the 185th Manchester derby on a TV screen in Spain on Sunday.
For the first time in nearly a decade, the Manchester United goalkeeper wasn’t lining up in a Premier League game against Manchester City; a sequence spanning 19 derbies since United’s 6-1 defeat to their neighbours in October 2011.
It would be fascinating to hear De Gea’s thoughts as a spectator on this occasion, and in particular the performance of the young man who now has the position of United’s No.1 firmly in his sights.
Dean Henderson has never made any secret of his intention to depose De Gea since returning to the club after two years on loan at Sheffield United in October.
Satisfying the 23-year-old’s ambitions while respecting De Gea’s status as first-choice has been an awkward balancing act for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer ever since, but the events of last week felt like a critical shift in that process.
Of course, Solskjaer was showing a human touch by signing De Gea off until after the international break so he could be with his partner Edurne Garcia in Spain following the birth of their baby daughter Yanay.
But would the United manager have given Bruno Fernandes a month off going into a crucial run of games in the league, Europe and FA Cup? Harry Maguire? Marcus Rashford?
The break also allows Solskjaer to indulge Henderson’s craving for more minutes, and meant the England goalkeeper started back-to-back league games for the first time at the Etihad in front of the watching Gareth Southgate.
Pressing his international claims ahead of Euro 2020 has also been uppermost in Henderson’s mind, and in that sense too the timing of De Gea’s hiatus has worked out well for him.
The opportunity is there and it’s clear we were watching United’s next No.1 on Sunday. It’s just a question of when Solskjaer makes that transition, and his handling of the situation when De Gea returns will be intriguing.
Henderson did his cause the power of good with a ninth clean sheet in 15 appearances this season, in what is likely to be the toughest of the matches he is set to play in De Gea’s absence.
City will be kicking themselves that they didn’t do more to test him. Henderson turned away a shot from Oleksandr Zinchenko in the first half and produced a rather unconvincing parry from Riyad Mahrez’s effort in injury-time that could have been punished on another occasion.
Otherwise, he took it all in his stride as City, for once, were found wanting in front of goal. Rodri hit the upright, Raheem Sterling fluffed a chance from close-range and Mahrez fired wide of the post but that was about it.
Henderson even had a hand in United’s second goal, releasing an excellent quick throw to Luke Shaw who made the break and then finished the move with a low shot.
‘He’s just growing, getting more and more mature,’ said Solskjaer afterwards. ‘I’m very happy with him. His presence out there, there’s a future top keeper there.’
The manager’s appraisal brought agreement from his old teammate Roy Keane on Sky Sports.
‘The goalkeeper was excellent,’ said Keane. ‘Ole used the word presence and that’s what all great goalkeepers have. I think this kid has great chance of being a brilliant goalkeeper for Man United.’
Back home in Madrid, De Gea replied to a celebratory tweet from the club’s official account with a happy emoji. He will be pleased for his teammates, and particularly for Henderson, but it’s clear their battle has entered a new phase.
Brightberry
250
“De Gea you are the best” you will always be the best”
KingJerryTheGreat
244
As De Gea is busy producing kids in Spain, Dean Henderson is busy producing clean sheets at the blue side of Manchester in England. Etihad stadium....
ManUtdGGMU
208
Some people are too myopic and can't see why Henderson can be the better GK than De Gea in long run 1. * Henderson is quite good on the ball * There was one moment in the game when he was pressed by a City player and he calmly made a 30 yard long pass to Luke Shaw that too with his weak foot,he is more composed and definitely a better passer than De Gea 2. We are very bad at defending setpieces,for instance prior to this match we conceded more from setpieces alone than the total amount of goals Man City conceded,and this match Henderson dealt with every cross as he was catching the ball instead of waiting like De Gea often does 3. Henderson also came out of his line to clear the ball once,while we know De Gea never comes out as he waits and solely rely on his shot stopping ability that puts massive pressure on CB as they have to keep pace with the forwards. De Gea is still a better shot stopper but there is so much more to goalkeeping than just making saves,people on this app sometimes talk as they know nothing about football bcoz of their favouritism