Man Utd upgrade contract offer to Ten Hag favourite with key tweak ensuring agreement is close

David de Gea is finally close to signing a new contract with Man Utd, who have changed the structure of their offer to the goalkeeper, according to reports.

De Gea has been due to become a free agent at the end of the season because of his existing contract expiring. Man Utd have had the option to extend it by another 12 months, but they have been reluctant to do so because of his high wages.

Erik ten Hag has used De Gea in every Premier League match since he took charge, though. Therefore, keeping him around on a lower salary has been a key task that Man Utd have been working on.

De Gea rejected the first offer of a new contract that Man Utd made to him in March. However, even then, there was a confidence that he would eventually find a compromise with the club, where he remains content.

And now, an update from ESPN has confirmed that an agreement is close for De Gea to remain a Man Utd player beyond this season.

According to the report, Man Utd have encouraged De Gea to stay by reducing his base salary, but offering him higher performance-related bonuses.

It isn’t entirely clear what those clauses could specifically be, but they seem to be significant enough to have won De Gea over.

READ MORE: Man Utd deal collapses leaving Ten Hag saddled with £80,000-per-week flop for another season

Indeed, Man Utd are now supposedly confident about agreeing De Gea’s new deal in full before May. Before then, they have to finalise some details about the structure of his contract.

For example, the report doesn’t mention how long his extension would last for. However, the majority of the terms have been ‘finalised’, per ESPN.

De Gea due to continue Man Utd career

Therefore, despite links with other goalkeepers, Man Utd look likely to be keeping De Gea around. Whether that is still as their first choice or as someone to support a new number one remains to be seen.

This season, De Gea has started 47 matches in all competitions for Ten Hag’s side. In the process, he has kept clean sheets on 21 occasions, otherwise conceding 50 goals.

With Man Utd since 2011, the Spain international has amassed a total of 534 appearances between the sticks for Man Utd. There have been 186 clean sheets and 579 goals conceded along the way.

In terms of honours, De Gea has won eight trophies with Man Utd. Most recently, he started and kept a clean sheet in their Carabao Cup final win over Newcastle.

Individually, De Gea has been in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year on five occasions. He has won the Man Utd fans’ player of the year and players’ player of the year awards four times each.

Now 32 years old, there have been some concerns about some aspects of De Gea’s game and his suitability for how Ten Hag wants to build from the back.

However, he has clearly retained his manager’s faith and still has further chapters of his Man Utd career to look forward to.