Manchester United need to bring back in-form keeper Dean Henderson from his loan spell at Sheffield United to help regular starter David de Gea rediscover his talent, according to their former striker Dimitar Berbatov.

The Spaniard has come under scrutiny this season, particularly after his performance during United’s 3-1 defeat by Chelsea in the FA Cup semifinal with goals from Olivier Giroud and Mason Mount coming following his errors.

“If United decide to bring back Dean Henderson from Sheffield United, I think that will do De Gea good,” Berbatov told Betfair. “Players need that competition and Henderson is doing tremendously well in my opinion.

“Henderson is 23, which for a goalkeeper is still very young, he’s got a lot of football ahead of him, but you can see that he is hungry to play and I think the competition he could bring to De Gea could be the difference maker, or breaker.

“Sometimes when you feel too secure in your position that is the moment when you start making mistakes.

“It’s the same with outfield players, when you think you are untouchable you make more mistakes because you are over-confident.”

Henderson, who last year signed a contract with Manchester United until June 2022, has already registered 13 clean sheets this season for Sheffield United.

“He (De Gea) is still one of the best goalkeepers in the world, regardless of the mistakes he has made this season,” said Berbatov. “Every goalkeeper, even the greats of the past have all made mistakes throughout the years.

“It’s David’s job to evaluate his performance and I’m sure he knows that he’s not doing well and he can do much, much better.”

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