Ilkay Gundogan’s shot that beat David de Gea to win the FA Cup final is said to have been saved by Premier League goalkeepers 81 percent of the time, according to a statistics office.
The Manchester City captain failed to get a clean left-footed connection as he volleyed a Kevin De Bruyne free-kick towards goal from the edge of the Manchester United penalty area.
But Gundogan’s shot still beat United keeper De Gea low to his right after he bounced twice before finding the bottom corner.
While the Spaniard may have been lost track of United defenders rushing out, he was nevertheless criticized for being slow to react.
His status as United’s No. 1 goalkeeper is under threat amid negotiations over a new contract at Old Trafford, with Erik ten Hag keen to sign another stopper next season to challenge De Gea.
David de Gea was hit for letting Ilkay Gundogan score Manchester City’s winner
The Man United goalkeeper was criticized for his slow reactions to Ilkay Gundogan’s volley
The Spanish goalkeeper was unable to prevent Ilkay Gündogan’s shot from floating into the goal
John Harrison, head of data science at Goalkeeper.com, tweeted that shots similar to Gundogan’s were saved 81 per cent by Premier League goalkeepers.
In other words, only one attempt in five finds the back of the net like Gündogan’s on Saturday.
Harrison wrote: ‘Should De Gea save the winner of the FA Cup final?
“It’s hard to see with the eye because while the shot came from a distance and moved slowly, it came through bodies and bounced awkwardly.
“At goalkeeper.com, we use these factors and more and find that this shot is saved by PL GKs 81% of the time.”
De Gea, 32, has had a mixed season at United. Although he won the Premier League Golden Glove award for most clean sheets, he has made some costly mistakes.
Harrison highlighted two such mistakes in a follow-up post: one in August’s 4-0 defeat to Brentford and another in May’s 1-0 defeat at West Ham.
Goalkeeping analyst John Harrison tweeted that such a shot is saved four times out of five by stoppers in Premier League football
The United defenders failed to get hold of Gundogan on the edge of their box and he was singled out by a Kevin De Bruyne free kick from the right flank
De Gea was slow to react to the volley despite not being seen by some of his defenders
De Gea can’t get over the goal line fast enough to prevent the ball from squeezing in
He said the two goals, which saw De Gea wriggle the ball past his body, had a 96 per cent and 98 per cent chance respectively.
He added: “So the FA Cup final winner was hardly a ‘roar’ as he goes in about 1 in 5 times, but it’s still a shot that a GK with De Gea’s ability to score shots would like to stop!’
De Gea could do little about Gundogan’s first goal, a stunning volley just 12 seconds into Saturday’s final at Wembley.
United equalized via a penalty from Bruno Fernandes after Jack Grealish was controversially convicted by VAR for handling Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s header.
But Gundogan’s second-place finish proved decisive as City added the FA Cup to their Premier League title and took another step towards United’s 1999 Treble triumph.
Pep Guardiola’s side will take on Inter Milan in next Saturday’s Champions League final in Istanbul to complete the set.
United manager Ten Hag defended De Gea after Roy Keane criticized him during ITV’s coverage of the final.
Man United boss Erik ten Hag, right, defended David de Gea against criticism of Man City’s goal
There were questions whether De Gea should have done better with the effort
Keane said: ‘United need to find a new goalkeeper. They need a world class striker and a new goalkeeper.
“They need other players and some strength in depth, but they need a new goalkeeper and a world-class striker. I’m tired of saying it.’
Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright concurred, saying: “They should at least get a goalkeeper. We’ve seen some big mistakes from him this season and they need at least a goalkeeper to push him.
“So if he’s going to make those mistakes, they’ll have someone who can come in and then they can have their turn.
“He’s made a lot of mistakes. But it’s the kind of shot that bounces two or three times before it reaches him, which says maybe his positioning wasn’t right in the first place.’
Keane continued his analysis. He said: “That’s the problem with top goalkeepers, they get you over the line in certain games and could have made the difference today.
De Gea, who is in talks with United about a new contract, plucks the ball from his net
De Gea roared against West Ham last month when a shot from Said Benrahma crept in
“You expect your keeper to save that and he didn’t and that’s why we see these parties. For Man United they need a world class goalkeeper and he isn’t.
But questioned about De Gea’s apparent discomfort in paying from behind, a key part of Ten Hag’s game, the United manager commented: “Put it this way, we’re on the right track, but there are issues in the game that we have to solve. improve if we want to take the next step and win trophies.”
De Gea are on the verge of agreeing a contract extension but it is widely expected that United will look to bring home a number 2 goalkeeper more with ten Hag’s style, even if it doesn’t seem to be a central part of the summer of United. plan.