Stats comparison between De Gea and Man United’s Dean Henderson

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a man under pressure as David De Gea faces serious competition in the form of Dean Henderson. [Photo: Courtesy]

Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea is no stranger to scrutiny.

The shot-stopper has been under criticism especially from last season when he made notable errors in several high-stake matches.

Some high-profile mistakes, including a calamitous error in a 1-1 draw with Tottenham, have led to questions over the Spain international's future as number one, especially with Dean Henderson thriving on loan at Sheffield United and decent performances from Argentina’s Sergio Romero when called upon.

Most recently, De Gea made three schoolboy errors that led to goals in the FA Cup semi-final fixture against Chelsea at Wembley Stadium in London.

The Spaniard’s mistakes led to Man United's unbeaten streak ending at 19 matches, and with it, a date against Arsenal on August 1 in the FA Cup final.

United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a man under pressure as De Gea faces serious competition in the form of Henderson – who is doing well on loan at Sheffield under manager Chris Wilder.

According to reports, the in-form shot-stopper, 23-year-old, is unwilling to return to Old Trafford next season unless he is the number one.

Solskjaer is in a conundrum as De Gea, 29, signed a new deal until at least June 2023 in September.

Football - FA Cup Semi-Final - Manchester United v Chelsea - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - July 19, 2020. Chelsea's Olivier Giroud (not pictured) scores their first goal past Manchester United's David de Gea. [REUTERS/Andy Rain/File Photo]

Using Opta Data, we compare the form of De Gea and counterpart Henderson in the English Premier League this season.

Games played

De Gea: 36

Henderson: 34

Shots Faced

De Gea: 364

Henderson: 387

Goals Conceded

De Gea: 35

Henderson: 29

Clean Sheets

De Gea: 12

Henderson: 13

Saves

De Gea: 91

Henderson: 95

Saves (from inside the box)

De Gea: 53

Henderson: 59

Saves (from outside the box)

De Gea: 38

Henderson: 34

Over the span of three years, Dean Henderson, 23, has been shipped out by Manchester United to separate clubs on loan. Each of these clubs has played in a wide range of leagues; from the seventh tier in the National North League to League Two, League One, the Championship and the Premier League. [Photo: Courtesy]

Save Percentage

De Gea: 72.2

Henderson: 76.2

Clearances (including. Punches)

De Gea: 16

Henderson: 26

Goals Conceded (in box)

De Gea: 31

Henderson: 27

Goals Conceded (out box)

De Gea: 4

Henderson: 2

Errors Leading to Goals

De Gea: 3

Henderson: 1

Errors Leading to Shots (including. goals)

De Gea: 4

Henderson: 1

Drops

De Gea: 1

Henderson: 4

Opta Data has a long-established, consistent list of ‘Event Definitions’ in football that are adhered to across all data collection centres and that is recognised as de-facto standard.

The data is collected in an organised way and this helps the creation of datasets useful for diverse research fields.