by Jerrad Peters

They have six points from two matches and the Community Shield for good measure, but Manchester United fans haven’t been able to help getting all worked up about new goalkeeper David de Gea.

In the three matches they’ve seen him play (and I can’t stress enough that it’s been only three matches), the 20-year-old (and I can’t stress enough that he’s only 20 years old) has given up a pair of soft goals and has looked generally unconvincing between the sticks. As a result, fans and pundits—many of whom are seeing him for the very first time—have been rather taken aback.

You can’t blame them, really. United quite publicly tracked de Gea last season, eventually making him the most expensive goalkeeper in English football history (and the second-most expensive in the history of the sport after Gianluigi Buffon) when they signed him for £18.9m from Atletico Madrid. At that price, and at that level of hype, many of de Gea’s early critics no doubt expected nothing less than 38 clean sheets in his first Premier League campaign; or, failing that, a dependable net presence to pick up right where the retired Edwin van der Sar had left off.

Of course, neither of those things was ever going to happen. Expectations are one thing; reality is another, altogether. And the reality of the situation is this: Manchester United are throwing in their lot with a very young ‘keeper—a ‘keeper who was shaky at times for Atletico last season and who has been shaky at times for the Red Devils this season.

But they’re doing it because they see upside in him; they see intangibles, and they also see a chance to develop a young ‘keeper and a young backline together. We saw that Monday against Tottenham Hotspur. Three of the four defenders who started the match comprise the long-term future of United’s defense. Allowing them to develop with the same ‘keeper they’ll be playing in front of six or seven years from now is an incredible opportunity, and one very few clubs have either the funds or the foresight to do.

That United are taking a chance on de Gea is obvious. Given that, it’s simply impossible to project not only the type of ‘keeper he’ll be in a decade, but also the type of ‘keeper he’ll be in September. And for those who’d like an immediate verdict on him, I have news for you: the jury’s out.

So be patient. Hate him one day and love him the next. But get to know him. And with that in mind, allow me to indulge in a Rafa-style “Fact Rant.”

Fact: David de Gea has won UEFA U-17 and U-21 gold medals with Spain and claimed the 2009-10 Europa League with Atletico Madrid. A few months later he kept a clean sheet as his Atletico side beat Inter Milan in the UEFA Super Cup.

Fact: David de Gea made his debut with the Atletico Madrid first team in September 2009 at the age of 18.

Fact: David de Gea was named to Spain’s provisional 30-man World Cup squad in 2010.

Fact: Atletico Madrid conceded a middle-of-the-pack 53 goals last season, and David de Gea contributed to the concessions by allowing a howler almost every other game. In pure shot-stopping terms, he was easily third-best of a trio of young ‘keepers who made summer moves. Manuel Neuer and Maarten Stekelenburg are the other two.

Fact: No one should be shocked or surprised when de Gea gives up a howler this season. It’s going to happen, guaranteed.

Fact: David de Gea marshals a better backline than either Neuer or Stekelenburg, and those organizational attributes—combined with his poise and calm, confident demeanor—are what caught the attention of United last season. A ‘keeper can always practice to become a better shot stopper, but the intangible elements that de Gea possesses—especially at just 20 years of age—are what set him apart to Sir Alex Ferguson.

Fact: David dea Gea, Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Fabio da Silva, Rafael da Silva and Jonny Evans are all 23 years old or younger. What Ferguson has done here is given the group of them the chance to develop as a unit, to learn about and from each other as they go. That there will be growing pains is a given, not only for dea Gea but also for the defenders. But Ferguson believes his squad is strong enough to sustain these growing pains and still win matches, as we saw against West Bromwich Albion in the season opener. If anything, these are very exciting times at Old Trafford.

Follow Jerrad Peters on Twitter @peterssoccer.