De Gea snubbed again? Ex-Man City boss addresses links with former Man Utd keeper
Tom Weber
- 13 Nov 2023 10:05 CST
- 4 min read
Manuel Pellegrini has dismissed the rumours linking his Real Betis side with a move for David de Gea.
The Spanish goalkeeper remains a free agent after leaving Manchester United in the summer. Since then, the experienced 33-year-old has been linked with a host of clubs but precious little has actually materialised.
Among the names suggested in the summer were Real Madrid after Thibaut Courtois went down with a potentially season-ending ACL injury. Los Blancos, however, signed Kepa Arrizabalaga on loan from Chelsea instead and De Gea, who is reportedly keen on returning to Spain, remained without a club.
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Links with Saudi Arabia, Inter and several Spanish sides appeared in recent months and the latest rumour, once again, suggested that a move to Real Betis could be on the cards. The Seville side have been struggling in the goalkeeping department all season, but ex-Man City and current Betis boss Manuel Pellegrini has now shut down the reports.
What did Pellegrini say?
At the weekend, Betis were held to a 1-1 draw by city rivals Sevilla. Ex-Newcastle and Leicester man Ayoze Perez had given Pellegrini's side the lead before former Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic unleashed a Puskas Award-worthy strike to equalise.
With Rui Silva and Claudio Bravo out injured, Fran Vieites was thrust into the goal for his first start for Betis. Pellegrini addressed the goalkeeping situation and the De Gea rumours after the game.
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"I think what happened with Fran was more or less what we expected from him. He trains every day, he is a goalkeeper who has many abilities, he did not have the slightest responsibility for the goal, he was calm and for me, it was a very good performance given how difficult it is to practically debut in professional football with everything that the outside environment entails."
"The rest," the Chilean continued, referring to whether his side will sign a new goalkeeper, "is speculation and at this moment I couldn't give you any information, but if you ask me I would say that I don't believe so."
