Man Utd announce double departure of youth-team goalkeepers

Manchester United have confirmed young goalkeepers Matej Kovar and Ondrej Mastny have left the club.

The Czech duo have completed permanent transfers elsewhere with Kovar joining Bayer Leverkusen for a fee of £7.7m, as per the Daily Mail. The Red Devils announced the news on Tuesday, with the 23-year-old taking the no.17 jersey at the Bundesliga club.

Kovar did not make a senior appearance for United but did feature twice in pre-season friendlies this summer. “Everyone at Manchester United would like to thank Matej for his service to the club and to wish him all the best for the future,” United said via their website.

As for Mastny, he spent the last season on loan at Northern Irish side Portadown and was further down the pecking orders among United’s youth options. The 21-year-old has joined Czech side Vysocina Jihlava.

The double departure continues the exodus of goalkeeper from Old Trafford this summer, with David de Gea the most high-profile player to move on after 12 years as the club’s no.1. He was replaced by Andre Onana who arrived from Ajax earlier this window.

Nathan Bishop also left United and joined Sunderland, which leaves Erik ten Hag with three senior goalkeeper options: Onana, Dean Henderson and Tom Heaton. The latter two have attracted interest from elsewhere this summer, with Henderson a target for Nottingham Forest and Heaton reportedly attracting the attention of several Championship sides.

United have been linked with moves for goalkeepers Altay Bayindir and Zion Suzuki, although the latter opted against joining the Red Devils and instead signed on loan for Belgian side Sint-Truidense

As for United’s Under-21s, Radek Vitek and Dermot Mee will battle for a starting berth this campaign.