Manchester United: Ander Herrera believes David de Gea will remain at United despite Real Madrid links

Manchester United star Ander Herrera believes David De Gea will stay at Old Trafford next season despite fresh speculations linking the Spanish with a move to Real Madrid. The Spanish midfielder, meanwhile, has lavished praise how his compatriot manage to deal with the pressure, revealing that he is so calm that sometimes before games he thinks about Spanish second division side Elche.

De Gea was heavily linked with a move to the Santiago Bernabeu during the summer transfer window, even being left out of the squad for the first six games of the campaign due to uncertainty over his future at the club. United and Real Madrid eventually reached an agreement on deadline day – with Keylor Navas included as a makeweight – but the deal failed as paperwork did not arrive at La Liga headquarters on time.

The Spaniard therefore opted to commit his long-term future to Manchester United by signing a new long term deal. However, reports in Spain have since claimed that Real Madrid have not given up on their intentions to sign the player, with some even suggesting he set a release clause in the new contract to leave Old Trafford for Los Blancos.

But asked by Marca whether he believes De Gea will move to Los Blancos in June, Herrera said: "I see him in Red, as my team-mate.

"He is a pure talent. I never saw anything like that. It seems that his arms get longer. I am going to tell you an anecdote: He is such a calm guy that sometimes when we are about to go to Old Trafford, with 75.000 fans in the stands, he start to tell us: "Today we win, today Elche must win! He is thinking about Elche, where his father was born, just five minutes before playing at the Theatre of Dreams.

"Another anecdote: we are trying to defend a free-kick from the rivals. And he said: 'Don't worry, I save it'. He is a pure talent who God gave him a long and giant hands, and calmness."