Manchester United are set to make their first signing of the summer with Donny van de Beek expected to complete a £40m move from Ajax this week.
The 23-year-old has been on the radar of Europe’s top clubs after playing a starring role during Ajax’s exhilarating run to the Champions League semi-final in 2018-19.
Real Madrid were credited with an interest for van de Beek last summer and again in January while Ronald Koeman reportedly wanted to sign him for Barcelona after the pair worked together with the Dutch national team.
Tottenham, who van de Beek scored against in the Champions League semi-final last year, scouted him extensively but would have had to sell players first in order to finance a move this summer.
It looks as though United have won the race to sign the Dutch international, therefore and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be pleased to add another high-calibre player to his squad ahead of next season.
Here is how van de Beek established himself as one of the most in-demand players in European football and where he could fit into an already star-studded midfield at Old Trafford.
Ajax breakthrough
Van De Beek signed his first professional contract with Ajax ahead of the 2014-15 campaign and graduated into the first-team setup the following season in what was his seventh year with the club.
The midfielder made his senior debut as a substitute during a 2-1 victory over Celtic at Celtic Park in the Europa League before going on to feature ten times in all competitions in 2015-16, scoring once. It wasn’t until Davy Klaasen’s move to Everton in 2017, though, that van de Beek blossomed into an integral member of the team.
After scoring just once in 42 appearances in his opening two seasons as a first-teamer, van de Beek’s numbers exploded in 2017-18 as he became a fixture in the starting line-up under Erik ten Hag. Although Ajax were pipped to the title by PSV, van de Beek impressed with 11 goals and six assists in 34 league games.
Van de Beek’s form in that breakthrough campaign was recognised in his homeland – he was picked by Holland for the first time against Romania in November 2017 – but it wasn’t until 2018-19 and Ajax’s remarkable exploits in Europe that he came onto the radar of a wider footballing audience.
He made a big impact in each of Ajax’s most memorable performances in that season’s Champions League, assisting Dusan Tadic in the 4-1 win over Real Madrid, scoring in the 2-1 defeat of Juventus and netting the only goal as Ajax beat Spurs 1-0 in the semi-final in north London.
Where will he fit in?
As the statistics over the past few years demonstrate, van de Beek is a progressive midfielder who can make an impact in the final third. In the Eredivisie, he has scored 28 goals and provided 21 assists in 91 games from the start of 2017-18 onwards.
Since ten Hag’s arrival in January 2018, Ajax have predominantly played in their traditional 4-3-3 system with van de Beek lining up on the right of the midfield three. On the rare occasions in which ten Hag has deviated to a 4-2-3-1, van de Beek has either played as part of a double pivot or in the no10 role.
Manchester United’s default formation under Solskjaer in 2019-20 was 4-2-3-1. After the Premier League’s resumption in June, the three central midfield players comprised of a sitter – usually Nemanja Matic – a box-to-box player in Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes in the advanced creative role.
It is difficult to see where van de Beek fits into United’s midfield puzzle considering the two obvious roles for him are already taken by Pogba and Fernandes. Solskjaer may attempt to shoehorn all three into the same line-up but that would lead to either Pogba or van de Beek playing in a defensive position which would inhibit their key strengths.
Although there isn’t an obvious slot for van de Beek in United’s best XI he would clearly be an excellent addition to the squad. Unlike Manchester City with their embarrassment of riches in central midfield, United are far weaker when either Pogba or Fernandes are unavailable. Van de Beek helps to rectify that issue.
Nevertheless, there are arguably four positions in United’s squad that require more pressing attention than central midfield: central defence, left back, defensive midfield and a versatile forward – like Jadon Sancho – capable of playing across the frontline. If United bolster those areas during the transfer window, the van de Beek signing is a nice bonus on top.
If they don’t the old Zinedine Zidane line springs to mind: “Why put another layer of gold paint on the Bentley?” Van de Beek is a great luxury to have, but is he a luxury that United actually need?
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