World Cup 2018: 5 things Hierro should look at fixing for Spain

#1 De Gea is not Casillas 2.0

De Gea is yet to show his best form for Spain

Iker Casillas remains Spain’s greatest ever goalkeeper and it was always going to take some doing to top what “San Iker” achieved while being numero uno for La Furia Roja.

De Gea has long been seen as the man to carry on Casillas’ legacy at the national level but the Manchester United man is yet to win over doubters that he can be the new Iker.

The man who Red Devil fans ignorantly describe as the “best goalkeeper in the world” has shown on many occasions that he has lapses in concentration and when he is not busy facing shots, he can get carried away and commit blunders.

The way Spain play: hogging the ball and moving it around to get the best possible angle, the goalkeeper is usually not called upon to make too many saves. Therefore, he has to always keep himself mentally ready to join in the action once he is needed.

This is an area that the really great goalkeepers excel at and is one that De Gea has consistently failed at (the recent friendly against Switzerland is another example). He will need to up his concentration level as his camera-friendly style which works at Manchester United will be counter-productive in Spain’s tiki-taka style.

Pepe Reina and Kepa Arrizabalaga are two very good options to have in reserve and manager Hierro should not be afraid to drop De Gea if he continues dropping clangers like he did against Ronaldo.