Manchester United legend Schmeichel comes to De Gea's defense

Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel has come to the defense of under-fire David De Gea, after the young goalkeeper was criticized following his side's 1-1 draw with Tottenham.

The 22-year-old was widely blamed for failing to deal with a cross into the United penalty area that allowed Clint Dempsey to fire in a last-minute equalizer from close range, but Schmeichel feels it is wrong to point the finger at the No. 1.

In fact, the former Old Trafford favorite believes Tottenham would have won the game convincingly were it not for De Gea’s contribution.

"It is very easy to claim De Gea is to blame," he told Sky Sports.

"I disagree. I think if De Gea had not played the way he did we would have lost 4-1.

"We played in a way that required the goalkeeper to make saves. He did that. He did his job. Nobody is highlighting that.

"My point is that if you are not that deep, we are not conceding those chances. That is the thing I would work on. In general, the way to win championships is not by defending as deeply as we did for the final hour on Sunday."

Schmeichel not only highlighed the Spaniard's contributions throughout the game, but also insisted that he was not to blame on Dempsey's late equalizer.

"For the goal, David does all the right things. He got a fist to it under pressure but, unfortunately, the ball ends up with a Spurs player.

"We should be further up the pitch. If that starts with the goalkeeper, he needs to work on that, but we need them to be brave enough to take them out."