Can Manchester United star play the Ederson role?

Manchester United visited the Allianz Stadium in Turin to face Real Sociedad in the first knockout tie of the Europa League last Thursday. And Dean Henderson enjoyed an impactful ninety minutes of football despite standing untested for the majority of the game.

On Thursday, Henderson was given the nod ahead of Solskjaer’s regular man in goal, David de Gea. Following a sloppy start to the game, the Manchester United side, sharpened by collective brilliance, soon gathered up pace, breaking the deadlock via a Bruno Fernandes goal in the 27th-minute of the game.

In the second half, Fernandes found the back of the net again, with Marcus Rashford and Daniel James also having their say in what was a 4-0 win over the Spanish side.

In an interview with the official Manchester United website on the back of an exciting result in Europe, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has claimed that Dean Henderson does certainly hold “a shout” for the starting berth against Newcastle United this weekend. According to the Norwegian gaffer, the Englishman could have already had added an assist to his name:

"“Of course Dean is in with a shout. We pick a team on Saturday and Dean was very solid, good kicking and he could or should have had an assist for Marcus, which is another thing we worked on. He was clean in his handling, clean in his short passes and it was a good performance.“He [Henderson] is maturing all the time but I have a very, very good goalkeeper in David [De Gea]. He saved us against West Brom so I can’t say to you now. I always speak to the players first before I say who’s playing and they will know.”"

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Should Henderson be starting for Manchester United over De Gea?

A continuous orator behind United’s defence-line, Henderson kept the clean-sheet having made two saves throughout the game. His long-range passing and game-reading ability were also brilliant on the night. As per the stats from Fbref.com, his goal-kicks covered an average distance of 55 yards.

Solskjaer’s comments somehow remind us of the heroics performed by Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson against Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League one week back. A left-footed launch from the Brazilian allowed Ilkay Gundogan to run with the ball down the free channel and find the back of the net. That was the City keeper’s first assist in the league this season.

Confident with his both feet, Henderson has kept 7 clean-sheets from 12 appearances for Manchester United this season. While getting an assist would never be his top priority, United fans would obviously be over the moon should the 23-year-old manage pull off one in the upcoming weeks.