De Gea keen to emulate idols

De Gea: Inspired by Old Trafford legends

Atletico Madrid goalkeeper David de Gea has described Manchester United legends Peter Schmeichel and Edwin van der Sar as his two idols.

De Gea, who is away with Spain's under-21 side in the European Championships in Denmark, is expected to seal a move to United at the beginning of next month, but the youngster says he is focused on his national team for now.
"I am trying to stay focused on the Euros for now because it's fundamentally important to our hopes that we all think only about that," he told AS in an interview.
Nevertheless, the goalkeeper is proud of United's interest in him.
"Manchester United are a great club and if they are interested in you, it's a compliment," he said.
The deal is set to go ahead early next month and not beforehand, because the negotiations have been handled by Portuguese agent Jorge Mendes, who will not represent De Gea until the beginning of July, when the deal with his current representative runs out.
However, the official line from the player is he wants to concentrate on the Euros.
"I'm just more relaxed if I focus on the Euros," he said.
"I want my head here, not somewhere else."
Despite those words, a move to United looks a formality, though, and De Gea will hope to follow in the footsteps of two of his idols.
"Edwin has been playing at 20 years at the highest level; he's a great goalkeeper and a big point of reference for me," he said.
"(When I was younger) I liked (Peter) Schmeichel a lot, as well as Van der Sar - they're the two best that I've seen."

SPAIN ISN'T JUST BARCA - CASILLAS

 

Iker Casillas - more to Spain than Barca.
Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas insists Spain's playing style was not inspired by the current great Barcelona side.

Many people have attributed the national team's success to the system used at Barca by coach Pep Guardiola, which has seen the Catalan club win a plethora of trophies in the last three seasons including three Primera Division titles and two Champions League crowns.

Seven Barcelona players started for Spain in the World Cup final win over Holland and all of the goals in South Africa were scored by members of Guardiola's squad - even though striker David Villa had yet to feature for the Catalans, having signed just before the tournament for Valencia.

Casillas, though, says Spain's style dates back to before the 2008 European Championship win, and claims Madrid were the dominant force back then.

"Anyone who has followed the national team a little will remember where our style of play comes from," he told Chilean newspaper El Mercurio in an interview.

"It doesn't come from 2010 or 2009, but from 2007 and 2008, and at that time Barcelona weren't the club dominating or creating hegemony in Spanish football; it was Real Madrid."

And Casillas remembers that only three Barcelona players featured in the Euro 2008 final against Germany.

"If we start to remember a little bit further back in time, only (Andres) Iniesta, Xavi and (Carles) Puyol were Barcelona players in the final of the European Championships against Germany," he said.

"That Spain is associated with Barcelona's play is a good thing because the team has achieved great success, but the national team is not just about Barcelona's success; it's about the success of the rest, too."