David De Gea will stay at Manchester United beyond the current transfer window, after Real Madrid opted against appealing to FIFA over their paperwork catastrophe.
A deal had been sealed between the two footballing giants, with the Spanish goalkeeper set to make the switch to his home city for £29m, with Madrid’s Costa Rican ‘keeper Keylor Navas moving in the opposite direction.
However, the requisite paperwork was not filed before the 11pm (English time) Spanish transfer deadline on Monday, with Real Madrid releasing a statement apportioning blame on the Old Trafford club.
Despite the transfer building throughout the summer, Madrid claim that United only opened negotiations yesterday morning, and didn’t reach agreement with Navas until 10:53pm.
They claim that United then submitted the paperwork at 11pm precisely, leaving no time for Madrid to reciprocate, and although they claim that FIFA were willing to allow the transfer to proceed, the Spanish LFP itself refused to sanction.
Their statement concluded with the assertion: “In short, Real Madrid has made everything you need, and at all times, to carry out these two transfers.”
Conversely, United officials have stated that they submitted their paperwork within the time frame, and any excuse from either side seems weak, given that the clubs have had three months to conclude negotiations on a deal that seemed to make sense from both sides.
However, both players have been left unhappy, with de Gea said to be ‘devastated’, and Navas having to stay at a club who were keen to replace him, after reportedly expressing his desire to work with United manager Louis Van Gaal.
Van Gaal will now have to integrate De Gea back into his squad, with Sergio Romero showing his unsuitability for the number one role in a poor performance at Swansea at the weekend.
United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward will now face losing De Gea on a free when his contract runs out at the end of the season, although United fans will be happy to watch one of the world’s premier ‘keepers in action at Old Trafford for a further year.
Image courtesy of Action Images/Jason Cairnduff, with thanks.
