Guti saddened Real Madrid did not sign De Gea

Madrid, Sep 8: Former Real Madrid star footballer Jose Maria Gutierrez "Guti" has said that he found it "a shame" that the European record champions could not sign Manchester United's Spanish goalkeeper David De Gea this summer.

The former Real Madrid midfielder expects De Gea, whom he considers as one of "the top three goalkeepers in the world," to spend this season with the English club "in the stands", knowing that soon he would be coming to Real Madrid, Efe reported on Monday. 

Guti said at a publicity event on Monday that De Gea is a very young player, who has many years left in his career, which he hopes he can enjoy at Real.

The former player added that the Real president Florentino Perez had done everything possible to ensure De Gea's transfer, but in the end it did not happen, noting that the club's fans hope that the 24-year-old ends up in the ranks of the La Liga outfit.