Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster has leapt to the defence of David de Gea after the goalkeeper’s display in Manchester United’s 1-0 win over Tottenham on Sunday.
De Gea was in inspired form, making 11 second-half saves to secure Ole Gunnar Solskjaer his sixth successive win as United’s caretaker manager.
And Foster, who spent five years at Old Trafford from 2005 to 2010, hit back at rival fans who claimed the Spaniard’s saves were easy to make as all the shots were straight at him.
He said on Twitter: “I see a lot of people saying all De Gea saves were straight at him, please factor in that the guy has some mad sense to know where to be at just the right time, you can’t teach that. Proper goally [sic].”
The result saw Manchester United keep back-to-back Premier League clean sheets for the first time this season.
De Gea’s fine performance drew praise from Solskjaer, who thinks the 28-year-old could become the club’s greatest ever goalkeeper.
He said: “We’ve had some great keepers at this club and I think he’s challenging both Edwin [van der Sar] and Peter [Schmeichel] for the number one spot historically.
“We had a good back four and David in behind them was unbelievable. You are allowed to have a good goalkeeper.
“I’ve played with a few fantastic goalkeepers. We have a tradition of having them and he has grown and grown. He deserves that man of the match [award].”
