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It has felt like a lifetime since match fans goaded on opponents participating in the Europa League with ‘Thursday Night Channel Five’, but the soullessness of the Europa League endures.
Manchester United are in a competition they don’t want to be in and if they had been eliminated by AC Milan it was perfectly possible to apply a positive spin. Not if you’re Dean Henderson.
“Let’s go,” Henderson yelled just before the start of the game against Real Sociedad at Old Trafford. United already had a 4-0 overall lead, the rotation was plentiful and if there were a crowd present, the schoolchildren would have outnumbered the regulars with their countdown.
However, Henderson’s approach was intentional and he could claim some credit for beating Mikel Oyarzabal when he took his penalty towards a Stretford End steward. He gave Henderson another clean sheet bonus.
Sergio Romero is still present at United to remind Henderson how rewarding Thursday nights can be. The Europa League has traditionally been reserved for United’s number two goalkeeper, but Henderson may not be on duty during the week after international matches in March.
Henderson, who turned 24 last week, hopes to maintain his place at Leicester in Sunday’s FA Cup quarterfinals. It’s not just that Henderson played in the previous rounds, but he was told to get ready to start six straight games and Leicester would be his sixth. He is in the mindset of extending that career beyond half a dozen games.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s denial was far from the biggest save of Henderson’s career, but it was the most important; a stop identical to Simon Kjaer’s header that he shook in the first leg, from closer and the importance was accentuated by the very presence of Ibrahimovic.
“It’s a save he should have made last week,” said Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. “Very similar. Very happy for him, of course. Great save.”
What was more impressive than Henderson’s relatively routine save was the run out of his area to sweep Ibrahimovic attacking him in the 71st minute. having rung the bells in the Duomo di Milano while collecting the ball.
One of the criticisms of David de Gea in recent years is that he is reluctant to leave his goal line. It’s a proactive skill that the gigantic Romero specializes in and Henderson is a more ‘involved’ goalkeeper.
That can sometimes cause consternation among defenders. Fabien Barthez gave kittens to Gary Neville with his wandering and, despite all the merits of the hardwired Ederson, his flimsy handling has contributed to Manchester City’s exit from the Champions League over the past two seasons.
Henderson seemed more interested in embellishing a standard save than actual goalkeeping basics when Kjaer connected in the 91st minute at Old Trafford last week. In a split second, a flawless night unraveled and Henderson was to blame.
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However, he had gained some slack. At Crystal Palace and City, Henderson was activated to prevent Patrick van Aanholt from scoring late and his pitch set the wheels in motion for Luke Shaw’s strike four days later. That attacking mentality of the goalkeeper to the side buccaneer play was reminiscent of Peter Schmeichel and Denis Irwin.
Henderson is as loud as Schmeichel and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, overlooked by England coach Gareth Southgate for this month’s team, will at least avoid their teammate for a fortnight. “Azza” is the signal for a United corner, with Henderson insisting that Wan-Bissaka withdraw to avoid a repeat of Dema Ba’s breakaway goal in Istanbul.
(Image: Manchester United FC 2021)
Including the second half of his Premier League debut with United, Henderson has posted 12 clean sheets in 18 and has the rare distinction of being the only United goalkeeper in history to have shutouts in Milan and City.
His rise to De Gea’s place has coincided with Victor Lindelof’s peak of form for two years and Harry Maguire’s level of performance has risen. Lindelof, usually bullied by physical forwards, is no longer bullied and fans are no longer agitating for Eric Bailly to partner with Maguire.
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United have kept 13 clean sheets in the last 22 games, enough to open a laundromat, and the summer priority has shifted from a center back to a forward center. “Victor and Harry, I think they played very well last season as well,” added Solskjaer. “We had so many clean sheets last season.
“Victor and Harry have got on well and have really built on last season. On the other hand, we have other centers here who come in and play when they get the chance.
“We are used to speculation and every goal he concedes at Manchester United will be scrutinized. That’s right.
“I know these guys have gotten much stronger mentally to deal with these things, we work on things. When you have a setback like we had against Milan in the last minute, we had a great … no fight, but we had a Little match You saw against West Ham and you saw tonight that there was no chance we were going to let any goals in.
“They are proud defenders and even though they can play football and play from behind and all that, when you see defenders who want to defend things, you are happy.”
Those who know Henderson insist that he is their biggest critic and say he was determined to improve after his excellent performance at City. Kjaer’s carelessness was backed up by back-to-back clean sheets and Henderson has gotten through his lengthy audition to become United’s new No. 1.
Thursday nights have helped.
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