Schmeichel: United can move on from De Gea

Manchester United will "never be about one player" and will move on should goalkeeper David de Gea be sold, says club legend Peter Schmeichel.

De Gea has been in exceptional form for Louis van Gaal's side this term and was voted United's Players' Player of the Year and fans' Player of the Year at the team's end-of-season awards on Tuesday.

The Spain international's sparkling performances have attracted reported interest from Real Madrid, and De Gea has been tipped for a return to the Spanish capital having previously represented Atletico Madrid.

Schmeichel, who made 398 appearances between the sticks for United during an eight-year spell, would love De Gea to stay at Old Trafford, but insists Van Gaal will find a suitable replacement should he need to.

"Clearly there's an issue where either himself or his girlfriend wants to go back to Madrid and you can't argue that Real Madrid isn't as big a place as Manchester Untiued, some would say bigger," Schmeichel told Perform. 

"If he wants to go he's done fantastically well for Manchester United. We should be thanking him and we of course will move on.

"I think the most important thing for Manchester United is that we have a positive transfer window and we get players in that can take the club forward. It will never be about one player, it's not  just about David de Gea.

"If he wants to continue playing we'll be very happy with that. If not we move on and the manager will take decisions on who takes over but we need more than one player - everybody knows that. 

"Hopefully we have positive messages coming in terms of players coming to Manchester United and we build an atmosphere and spirit where we can move on and challenge for trophies again."

United have secured an immediate return to the UEFA Champions League in Van Gaal's first season in charge, and Schmeichel's former team-mate Teddy Sheringham believes that will be crucial for player recruitment.

"He's [Van Gaal] done what's been asked of him to get back into the Champions League," he said. "All the players want to play in the big cups, it's vital they're in the top four."