-Credit:GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images
Keylor Navas has opened up about the moment he broke down in tears when his transfer to Manchester United fell apart.
But it wasn’t tears of sadness Navas wept on deadline day in the summer of 2015 – but rather tears of joy. The 38-year-old was touted as a sweetener for United in a swap deal that would have seen goalkeeping counterpart David De Gea move to Real Madrid.
The transfer never materialised, however, after an alleged fax machine malfunction infamously meant the paperwork wasn’t submitted on time. Each goalkeeper remained with their respective clubs as a result, and Navas underlined his relief that he got to remain in the Spanish capital.
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“I cried that night when I found out I was staying, it was a build-up of emotions,” said Navas during a 2015 interview with Spanish radio station Cadena COPE. “I didn’t want to leave, Madrid is my home.
“I never wanted to leave Real Madrid. My agent told me to be alert to my phone. We had to go to Barajas [airport], although I never actually got on a plane – I was in a waiting room. I thought that if God wanted me to leave Madrid, it would be for the best, but he didn’t want me to. . .”
Both parties came to benefit, too, as Navas stood guard during one of the most successful spells in football history, never mind just Real Madrid’s. The Costa Rican was the club’s No1 as Real became the first club in more than 40 years to clinch three consecutive Champions League titles (or European Cups).
David De Gea ended up staying at United for another eight years and left as a free agent in 2023 -Credit:Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
Premier League-winner De Gea – who spent 12 months as a free agent before joining Fiorentina last year – couldn’t quite match those levels of success at United. The 34-year-old added an FA Cup to his collection in 2016 and went on to win the Europa League, as well as two Carabao Cups.
Free agent Navas did eventually leave Madrid to join Paris Saint-Germain in 2019, spending five years on the books in France. The veteran spent the second half of the 2022/23 campaign on loan at Nottingham Forest but departed Paris with three Ligue 1 titles and three Coupes de France to his credit.
Despite the fact he has been without a club since May 2024, Navas has yet to officially announce his retirement from football. However, his legacy at Real Madrid will ensure he goes down as one of the greatest goalkeepers of his generation, while United fans may wonder what might have been.