Donny van de Beek arrived at Manchester United last summer from Ajax. There were a lot of expectations surrounding the Netherlands international but it is safe to say that he has not yet been able to show his best form during his time at Old Trafford.
The Dutch midfielder has found it difficult to break into Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s starting XI and has spent the majority of his time at the Theatre of Dreams on the bench.
One would be hoping that he can find his feet in English football this season though. He is yet to feature for the Red Devils in this campaign but it looks like the midfielder is in Solskjaer’s plans as the manager predicted that he will be important.
As reported by GOAL, following the 1-1 away draw against Southampton, Solskjaer said:
"“What could we have done differently?“I thought Nemanja [Matic] was excellent, Antho [Martial] was close to scoring a goal but Jadon [Sancho] and Donny will be important for us.”"
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Van de Beek could still play a big role for Manchester United this season
It goes without saying that Van de Beek’s first season in English football was not brilliant. But that does not mean that he cannot play a big role in this team moving forward. At the end of the day, there are a number of top quality players who have struggled in their first season in the Premier League through the years.
Van de Beek has already shown that he can perform at the very highest level, whether it was for Ajax or the Netherlands national team. Now, it is about finding his feet at Old Trafford.
The depth of this Manchester United squad means that opportunities will be hard to come by though and he will have to make the most of them. The likes of Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Scott McTominay, Fred, Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard are part of their midfield as well.
Thus, it remains to be seen how this campaign turns out for Van de Beek. But Solskjaer’s comments about his importance to this team are certainly a massive positive for the player.