One of Carlisle United’s co-owners says it would be more lucrative for the Blues if Dean Henderson got back in the Manchester United team rather than being sold.

And Steven Pattison urged new Old Trafford boss Erik ten Hag to recall the Cumbrian goalkeeper in place of “the Spanish guy who’s not very good” – David de Gea.

Pattison made the comments at a directors fans’ forum at Brunton Park on Tuesday night.

It came as the Blues were asked if they had made any plans for a potential sell-on windfall should Henderson make a big-money move this summer.

The Whitehaven-born keeper, who was with Carlisle’s academy before joining Man Utd in 2011, has been strongly linked with Newcastle United.

It follows a season when he has been second-choice to de Gea, having lost his place at the start of the Premier League campaign due to Covid-19.

Pattison said: “When you talk about football fortune…when Dean was in the Man United team, we [would] get so much every ten games.

“It would probably work out better if he played for Man United for the next five years, or whatever.

“Unfortunately, whatever happened – he got injured and the other fella got back in, the Spanish guy who’s not very good. I don’t think he is.

“So we need Dean to be sold…[or], in my opinion, actually in the Man United team.

“Hopefully this new guy [ten Hag] is gonna go with youth. He’s got to start from the bottom. So why not start with Dean in goals? If that happens, we still get a windfall.”

Henderson has been the subject of conflicting reports in recent days about his fate.

The Manchester Evening News suggested a move to Newcastle was close, but Toon boss Eddie Howe insisted he was not on the brink of signing any player.

It also remains unclear whether a loan or permanent move is most likely should the talented Cumbrian leave Old Trafford.

Carlisle chief executive Nigel Clibbens said it would be premature for the Blues to make plans for any sell-on cash.

READ MORE: Carlisle United fans' forum - as it happened

He told fans: “I think about it 24 hours a day. I go to bed thinking about it, honestly.

“I get up in the morning, look [at news reports] and it says Dean Henderson’s going to go on loan, and the next one says he’s going for £40m, and the next one says he’s going to be sold for £28m…

“That’s from so-called media experts in the know on the same day. So who knows…

“For us to start planning what we would do with that is a bit premature.

“We’re always going to have debt to deal with, infrastructure to deal with, club to deal with and team. For us it’s where does that balance go.

“You can spend it all of the team and then run out of the money 18 months later, which we’ve done before, when we had the Liverpool [cup tie] and sold Kyle Dempsey and all this kind of stuff before I arrived.

“You can not spend any of it, and stick it all in the bank, or spend some of it unwisely. Or spend it all on your ground and have a great ground, and disappear like Darlington.

“You’ve got to get the balance right. It would be a great problem to have.”