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Newcastle United are reportingly weighing up a move for free agent David de Gea, with current goalkeeper Nick Pope facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines. Pope came off during Saturday’s win over Manchester United with a shoulder injury, and concerningly for the Magpies, his most-likely next step is to undergo surgery.<\/p>\n
Pope had been a mainstay in Eddie Howe’s starting XI, playing in every Premier League game this season before going down against the Red Devils. The 31-year-old immediately signalled to the bench to indicate a problem with his shoulder, and he needed to be helped off the pitch.<\/p>\n
Concerningly for Newcastle, Pope suffered a dislocated shoulder during his time at Burnley and spent five months out of the game between 2018 and 2019. The England international is facing another lengthy lay-off this time around, with Howe believed to be braced for his starting stopper to go under the knife ahead of further check-ups this week.<\/p>\n
According to The Daily Mail, bringing in De Gea is one of the options under consideration by senior figures at St James’ Park.<\/p>\n
The Spaniard has been a free agent since leaving Man Utd at the end of last season. He was due to sign a new contract at Old Trafford before the club pulled the plug on his proposed deal and offered him significantly reduced wages instead.<\/p>\n
De Gea has been heavily linked to clubs in the Saudi Pro League ever since, but the 33-year-old remains on the market while waiting for his next opportunity to arise.<\/p>\n
Having previously banked a reported \u00a3375,000 per week while at United, De Gea would need to accept a hefty wage reduction to join up with Newcastle. The former Spain international won a Premier League, a Europa League and three domestic cups during his time with the Red Devils.<\/p>\n
De Gea also racked up well over 500 appearances for the club before being replaced by Andre Onana. Howe’s current back-up options at St James’ Park comprise former United loanee Martin Dubravka and ex-Liverpool flop Loris Karius.<\/p>\n
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