Ole: Donny will give us something SPECIAL
OLE Gunnar Solskjaer believes Donny van de Beek will complement his existing midfield options at United after making the Holland international his first signing of the summer.
United’s EUR39million deal for the 23-year-old further strengthens a strong midfield for Solskjaer and Van de Beek will be competing with the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba after sealing his move from Ajax.
But Solskjaer believes Van de Beek can bring something different to the team, while also hailing the Ajax academy graduate’s mental fortitude to be a success at United.
“Donny has all of the technical attributes needed to perform in this team and has the personality required to succeed at Manchester United,” Solskjaer said of his new arrival.
“His ability to see space, time his movements and read the game will really complement the qualities that we have in midfield and his arrival really strengthens the depth of talent we have in that position.”
Van de Beek was a standout performer in Ajax’s run to the Champions League semi-finals in 2018/19 and had been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid for the last 12 months.
But with the Covid-19 pandemic hitting the revenues of the La Liga champions United were in a position to hijack the deal and Solskjaer spoke to Van de Beek personally to sell him his vision for the club.
The attacking midfielder will link-up with his new team-mates at Carrington next week, with Van de Beek currently away on international duty with Holland, who face Nations League fixtures against Poland tomorrow and Italy on Monday. “Donny’s performances in the Eredivisie and in Europe have been excellent over the last few years and we are all looking forward to working with him,” added Solskjaer.
His ability to see space and read the game really strengthens our depth of talent
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
The Dutchman has been a hugely popular figure at the Amsterdam club – so much so that in an M.E.N. exclusive, United legend Edwin van der Sar, now CEO of Ajax, has penned a heartfelt open letter to United fans in which he asks them to ‘take good care of our Donny’ - See page 52, opposite.