De Gea Eyes FA Cup Reward

David De Gea kept Manchester United in the FA Cup with a stunning late save against Chelsea and wants to take advantage in Monday lunch-time's sixth-round replay at Stamford Bridge.

In the first game at Old Trafford three weeks ago, the Reds surrendered an early two-goal lead and Juan Mata was inches away from completing a remarkable turnaround for the Blues at the death. But De Gea stuck out a trademark right boot to divert his fellow Spaniard’s effort just wide of the post and preserve United’s hopes of a domestic Double.

In an exclusive interview with Inside United, the goalkeeper recalled: "Juan turned Jonny Evans and suddenly the whole goal opened up for him to shoot.

"But at full stretch I managed to make contact with my toe and it was very satisfying to keep it out.

"He came up after the game and congratulated me for the save but he also took the mickey a bit, in a nice way!

"It’s difficult to attribute value to individual saves because they’re all important, but it’s one of my best."

After playing in five ties during his two seasons at United, De Gea has a good understanding of the stature of the FA Cup, the equivalent of the Copa Del Rey in his homeland.

"It’s a historic, well-known, long-running competition," the 23-year-old told ManUtd.com. "It’s always in the news in Spain and I remember watching it on TV when I was younger.

"I get the sense the FA Cup is a little more prestigious than the Copa but they’re certainly similar. It’s a competition we’re proud to play in."