David de Gea does not fit the template of an Erik ten Hag goalkeeper. He is not comfortable on the ball and his distribution is wayward, but he also struggles to command his area and sweep as well; this has raised question marks over whether he should be the undisputed number one at Old Trafford.
To this end, Manchester United have been looking for a Plan B, not just to act as a back-up for De Gea but to challenge him for his place in the team. Fans were excited when names like Yann Sommer and Kevin Trapp were linked as they believed they were worthy contenders to the Spaniard, but both players have ruled out moves according to reports in Germany.
So now United are a bit stuck, with a World Cup on the horizon, current number ones don't want to move to Old Trafford where they could potentially remain a back-up to De Gea and miss out on the competition, so they might have to look at number twos instead. The Athletic have reported that the club are in talks with Newcastle United over a potential loan for Martin Dubravka. with a £5m option to buy.
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Dubravka originally was the undisputed number one at Newcastle but lost his place to Karl Darlow under Steve Bruce. However when Eddie Howe was appointed he reinstalled the Slovakian as number one at St James Park and he was a key part of an incredible run which saw the club climb out of the relegation zone and finish comfortably in 11th.
However, this summer Newcastle moved to sign Nick Pope from Burnley after the Lancashire side was relegated from the Premier League last season despite the English keeper's best efforts. This has again seen Dubravka return to the bench, but maybe he believes he has a better chance of dethroning De Gea.
De Gea was better against Liverpool last week than he had been in United's opening two games, but it was clear there were still some clear issues with his game. After the nightmare mix-up which saw Brentford's Mathias Jensen score after a poorly placed pass to Christian Eriksen, the Spaniard was seemingly banned from playing out from the back against Jurgen Klopp's side.
The long goal kicks were not much better at retaining possession, but luckily Ten Hag had drilled his side well to win the ball back high and negate the problems that came from it. But this won't always work and it's clear United need to find a solution sooner rather than later.
But is Dubravka the answer? That's what many United fans are asking. At a glance it seems that the keeper is a similar profile to his Spanish counterpart, he doesn't venture outside his box and he is very reliant on his shot-stopping ability.
Dubravka can kick it long with accuracy, which is something more than De Gea offers, but it is unclear whether he can play passes consistently much closer to his net. One obvious plus is that he has a better command of his area, claiming high balls and crosses into the box.
The issue is for many fans that the move lacks any ambition. Dean Henderson is currently performing out of his skin at Nottingham Forest and although it was the player's choice to leave, De Gea's glaring weaknesses have made many United fans question why he wasn't given a chance.
And if Henderson leaves at the end of his spell, United will need to sign a new up-and-coming keeper to replace him, especially as de Gea's contract is set to expire. Overall it is not an awful move to sign Dubravka, but at the start of a new project under Ten Hag, fans are understandably wanting more.
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