Man Utd legend identifies David De Gea fault in FA Cup final loss against Man City

Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel has admitted he was ‘very surprised’ by David de Gea’s role in a decisive moment in his side’s FA Cup Final defeat against Manchester City.

The Spain international was beaten within the first 13 seconds of the Wembley clash after City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan crashed a stunning volley beyond him from distance. United got back on level-terms before half-time thanks to a Bruno Fernandes penalty but it was De Gea’s role in what turned out to be the critical moment in the game that caught the eye of one of his predecessors at the club.

Gundogan was United’s tormentor-in-chief six minutes after half-time as German international was found by Kevin De Bruyne and sent another volley beyond De Gea from the edge of the area. Schmeichel was left underwhelmed by the United keeper’s role in the goal and found several faults in his approach to the save.

He told BBC Sport: “I think he should have done better and I’ll tell you why I was very surprised. This is the corner where we are and I look at where he is in the goal, I put myself in there and I’m thinking ok, what I have to do is be right in the middle of this triangle (closer to his near post). So if I am there, he gets a full hand to it but he’s hard a yard away.

“He’s a little bit too deep, it’s like he doesn’t follow the game. Is he unsighted? I haven’t a clue because I’m not in that goal but still, he should move to where the ball is. You work with that triangle all of the time so you move where the ball is, you have to follow that around and I think he didn’t do that.”