Ex-Man Utd right-back Gary Neville: De Gea’s standards have dropped.

Gary Neville reckons De Gea’s standards have dropped and it is down to confidence issues.

De Gea made a costly mistake against Tottenham on Friday [Getty]

David de Gea's decline in form is not just a blip, says Gary Neville 

Former Manchester United right-back Gary Neville is convinced David de Gea's decline in form is more serious than everyone thinks.

The Spain goalkeeper’s mistakes have become a little more rampant in the last year and he has been told to go "back to basics".

De Gea took majority of the blame for Tottenham's opening goal in the 1-1 draw with United on Friday night as he tried punching the ball instead of catching it. 

"He was the one player United could rely upon for the last four years but he's not the same," he said on the Gary Neville Podcast.

"He hasn't been the same for some time. When form drops for six months it's a blip but when it goes on for a year you start to worry. When it goes over two years it becomes more permanent.

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"That is now a fair representation of what De Gea is as he's making lots of mistakes. Ones he would never make - he was always somebody you could completely rely upon. It can only be a confidence thing. The arms, legs and body are the same - it's got to be the mind.

"The reception he's got in Spain has affected him. He's even been booed by Spanish fans when he's wearing the Spanish shirt. In the World Cup in 2018 he really struggled and from that he's doubted himself. Mentally he's not quite the same."

Neville also said the former Atletico Madrid shotstopper needs to put in the work “to stop the erosion“.

"He's got to go back to basics," he said.

"There's only one thing you can do when you're having a tough time: work. Work harder than you have ever done in your life. What will happen is that you will tell yourself the amount of work you put in you deserve to be good again. That means coming in at 7.30am and leaving at 6pm if needs be. He has to do something to stop the erosion.

"Mistakes like that can happen on the first game back but it's happening far too much over the past couple of years."

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