De Gea or Casillas? Which goalkeeper should start Spain’s World Cup campaign?

(L-R) Spain goalkeepers Pepe Reina, Iker Casillas and David de Gea of Spain in action during a training session of the Spain National Team at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium

Ahead of the World Cup, little focus has been paid to Spain’s goalkeeping options. Should Manchester United’s David de Gea be considered ahead of the legendary Iker Casillas?

Casillas has not had a vintage year and a half since falling out of favour with ex-Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho. Diego Lopez was signed as his replacement and Casillas was so infrequently used that his departure seemed almost inevitable at the time.

New Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti assuaged Casillas’s fears somewhat, and he played the majority of Madrid’s cup fixtures this season as they won both the Copa del Rey and Champions League. He did not, however, play a single minute of league football.

Casillas also made a high profile error in the Champions League final, and if it were not for Sergio Ramos’s game saving injury time header, his error of judgement would have handed the trophy to Madrid’s city rivals Atletico.

via fansided

In contrast, David de Gea was one of very few Manchester United players to emerge from their season with any credit. Aside from a costly error against Sunderland in the League Cup semi-final, de Gea did little wrong as the rest of his team collapsed around him.

After captaining the Under-21s side, he recently made his international debut for the Spanish national team, appearing as an 81st minute substitute against El Salvador in a World Cup warmup match.

The question is whether starting de Gea at the World Cup could be a worthwhile risk for Spain manager Vicente Del Bosque to take.

Iker Casillas conceded far fewer goals per shot compared to David de Gea.

Surprisingly, given the manner in which Casillas has fallen out of favour in Madrid, his stats are exceptional. It took 4.22 shots on average for an opponent to beat him last season in the Champions League. In comparison, de Gea conceded a goal for every 1.44 shots he faced in the same competition.

Casillas was also a better distributor of the ball than de Gea.

Given the manner in which Spain play, retaining the ball as a method of limiting opposition chances, the quality of distribution from the goalkeeper is imperative. Again, Casillas beats de Gea here, with 68% of his balls out from the back finding a teammate, compared to de Gea’s 60%.

Casillas also managed more clean sheets in the Champions League last season, six to de Gea’s five, although Real Madrid did play three more matches than Manchester United in the competition.

The real positive in de Gea’s favour is the vastly greater amount of football he played last season, appearing regularly in every competition for his club side. With Casillas not playing a single game in the league, de Gea’s 37 appearances looks impressive. Mistakes of the sort seen during the Champions League final, realistically attributable to rustiness due to a lack of league appearances, could prove a huge issue in the generally tight World Cup.

Ultimately, the question is difficult to answer. De Gea has played more football but certainly cannot call on the same level of international experience as Spain captain Casillas. Casillas also outplayed de Gea when picked to play this season, but played infrequently. Del Bosque certainly has a big decision on his hands.