Manchester United are yet to agree a contract with David De Gea, but if his demands are too high, they should let him go for the good of the club.

It sounds crazy, yes, because he’s arguably the best goalkeeper in world football (ignoring the World Cup) but if The Evening Standard’s report is right and United could be priced out, it’s important they send a message that nobody is bigger than the club. If they collapse to his agent’s demands too easily, they could have a wage war on their hands.

The Spaniard’s move to Real Madrid never quite crossed the line in 2015 due to a fax machine fault, if you can believe that, and since then rumours have circled around his future. It’s not hard to believe that he might want to leave to play for his supposed boyhood club or even another top European side fighting for the league and top honours, which United aren’t doing at the moment.

If he wants to stay though, he’ll take the wage he’s given.

Of course, players and their agents will always barter for more money, but at the end of the process, it’s a simple decision between accepting United’s final offer because he wants to play for them, or leaving because his head’s been turned. Money is a factor, but you’d like to think players will find a way to make the deal work if they want to stay.

United already have a crazy wage bill that the club don’t seem to care about too much, which is the opposite to their rivals Manchester City who have pulled out of deals for targets over the last few years because their wage demands would ruin the club’s structure. Alexis Sanchez was lured to United by a wage City would never pay a player who had a just arrived at the club, so United could well give De Dea whatever he wants, but that doesn’t mean they should.

If he’s given what he wants, expect to see Paul Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola at Ed Woodward’s door demanding more money, and that can upset the squad harmony. The club need to be seen to be in control of their players, and the players themselves should want to play for the club enough to accept what United are offering.

Sir Alex Ferguson would never allow a player to hold the club to ransom, and he wasn’t such a bad manager, was he?