Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea made a rare penalty save from West Ham United’s Mark Noble on Sunday – and found the build-up ‘a bit strange’.
The Red Devils made the trip down to East London on Sunday for a tricky game against the Hammers.
Said Benrahma’s deflected strike gave West Ham the lead, only for Cristiano Ronald to inevitably equalise.
Ex-West Ham ace Jesse Lingard won it though, hammering in a superb effort against his former club.
Late drama for West Ham
There was a late twist though as West Ham won a last-gasp penalty.
Declan Rice took the ball, only for David Moyes to make a stunning substitution.
On came club legend Mark Noble. A reliable penalty taker with a fine record from the spot.
Unfortunately for West Ham, David De Gea made a great save to keep Noble’s penalty out.
Speaking to The Telegraph, De Gea called the situation ‘a bit crazy’.
De Gea noted that he thought Noble taking the penalty was ‘a bit strange’ because he had already seen Rice with the ball ready to step up.
“Everything was a bit crazy. I saw Declan Rice with the ball and then suddenly I saw Mark Noble with the ball. It was a bit strange,” said De Gea.
“He’s the specialist of the team but I made the save and we got the three points. As soon as I saw the ball hit Luke Shaw’s hand I was always thinking about the penalty.”
De Gea penalty save stats
It’s rare we see a penalty save from De Gea.
Not to say that saving a penalty is easy, but the Spaniard’s record hasn’t been great.
Sunday’s denial was De Gea’s first penalty save since 2016. De Gea saved an FA Cup spot kick from Romelu Lukaku more than five years ago.
De Gea has now pulled off a penalty save against four players in the Premier League.
Noble joins Robin van Persie, Steven Gerrard and Leighton Baines in this exclusive yet unwanted club.
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