Back in 2003, NHL goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He was unreal, but the following offseason, with Giguere’s infamously large gear the inspiration, the NHL implemented pad restrictions and a $25K fine for teams found guilty of ignoring the rule. In essence, Giguere could no longer resemble the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters.
Watching David de Gea tend the net is like watching Giguere in the days of yore. He’s obviously cheating.
His gloves, or something, are too big. What other explanation do we have for his growing highlight reel? His ability to seemingly earn United an extra 15-20 points per season, and now, give them a legitimate shot at advancing to the Champions League quarterfinals after a pretty dreadful performance against Sevilla?
You can't score on him, and he's obviously not the size of the entire goalmouth, but it sure seems that way.
In the first half of Wednesday’s match at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium in Seville, De Gea made five saves to keep the match scoreless. Two of them, in the 45’ and 45+1’ minutes, were world-class, mind boggling pieces of goalkeeping.
45’ Save by David de Gea vs. Sevilla
45+1’ Save by David de Gea vs. Sevilla
OMG, David De Gea. https://t.co/q91bk54GGd
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) February 21, 2018
Amazing reaction save by David De Gea to deny Luis Muriel's header!! His 2nd world class save in quick succession as #SevillaFC piled on pressure at the end of the 1st half. #MUFC #ManUtd #SEVMUN #SevillaMUFC #UCL pic.twitter.com/sQZQFP6Vqg
— Jason Foster (@JogaBonito_USA) February 21, 2018
The 27-year-old Spaniard would add three more in the second half, giving him a total of eight on the night. What a great stratagem from Jose Mourinho, putting this guy in goal. Pep Guardiola couldn't do that.