Manchester United's Spain goalkeeper David De Gea was facing an uncertain future on Tuesday after his expected move to Real Madrid was apparently scuppered when the paperwork did not arrive at the Spanish League on time.

As the clock ticked towards the midnight deadline on Monday, media reports said Real and United had reached a deal for De Gea to return to La Liga, with Real's Costa Rica keeper Keylor Navas going the other way.

However, when Spain's professional league (La Liga) declared the transfer window shut there was still no official confirmation and reports later said that although De Gea had signed his new contract, the relevant documents had not arrived in time.