DUTCH MASTER
How cocky Depay went from spectacular United flop to Holland superstar
WHEN Wayne Rooney recounted his favourite story about Memphis Depay’s brief and unspectacular career at Manchester United, no one was particularly surprised by it.
At fault for a goal in United’s defeat at Stoke on Boxing Day 2015 that left manager Louis van Gaal on the brink of quitting,
Depay was hooked at half-time and told to report for the reserves at Altrincham the next day.
‘Look, it’s a bit difficult,’ Rooney told his team-mate. ‘Just don’t come in with all your fancy stuff. He turned up for the reserve game in his Rolls-Royce, wearing a leather jacket and a cowboy hat. I just thought, “What’s the point?”.’
It is a story worth retelling as the 27-year-old prepares for tomorrow’s last 16 clash between Holland and Czech Republic in Budapest as a star of this Dutch team ahead of a summer move to Barcelona.
Many others at Old Trafford had reached the same conclusion as Rooney about the cocky star just six months after his arrival from PSV Eindhoven for £31million, and he was gone a year later.
In theory, Depay should have been a good fit for his old Holland coach Van Gaal, but it did not work out that way. Depay felt he did not have the freedom to express himself under the strict manager.
There were question marks over his attitude in training and the relationship with the manager deteriorated. Depay’s confidence suffered but he ignored Van Gaal’s advice to see a sports psychologist.
People close to the player were worried he was struggling without the support network he left behind in Holland — which had helped him overcome a troubled childhood to succeed at PSV — and concerned he made a mistake by accepting the iconic No 7 shirt at United.
Typically, Depay was not fazed. He turned up for training in a Mercedes G-Wagen with ‘M7’ embroidered in the headrests. But the rest of the numbers did not back up such confidence. Depay played 53 times for United, scoring just seven goals.
Van Gaal was replaced by Jose Mourinho and he made only one start under the new boss — lasting 55 minutes in the League Cup at Northampton — and four substitute appearances before leaving. ‘I lost my joy and my football,’ he said later.
Those ready to write him off did not know the man. In his book Heart of a Lion, it was described how Depay had come from a broken home and been physically abused by his mother’s new husband and his children. He was expelled from school, began drinking at 12 and dealt in drugs before finding salvation in football and a burgeoning hip-hop career.
Depay felt he learned to survive in the urban jungle, which is one reason for the lion tattooed on his back. Another? ‘I don’t know if I had a hero growing up but I had a favourite movie, The Lion King,’ he said recently.
‘You know, Simba was obviously my favourite character in the movie and it’s a beautiful story where he comes back and reclaims the throne again.’
Depay has made quite a comeback, too. He was so determined to get his next move right after United that he used a data company to find a club who would give him more freedom on the pitch and came up with the unlikely solution of Lyon.
The Dutchman got what he wanted in France: a more fluid, central role and the responsibility to be a team leader again. The proverbial big fish in a smaller pool.
He scored 22 goals in his first full season and made 13 assists, level with Neymar at Paris Saint-Germain. There were another 22 goals this season, making it 76 in 178 games for Lyon — the same record of one goal every 2.4 games he enjoyed at PSV and far better than his 7.5 average at United.
That tally included Depay scoring in six consecutive rounds of the Champions League in 2019-20 to propel Lyon’s surprise run to the semis. However, he has never made any secret of his desire to sign for another top club, and despite being made captain there was criticism of his coaches Bruno Genesio and Rudi Garcia.
No one was surprised to hear Depay would be leaving when his contract runs out next week, and a free transfer to Barcelona is a sign he is back in the big time.
His progress has been mirrored on the international stage. Depay has become a key figure for the Dutch playing in a more central attacking position, and has scored twice at Euro 2020 as Frank de Boer’s side breezed into the last 16 with three wins.
The Czechs are standing in their way tomorrow, but Depay will back himself to succeed. He always has done.
‘He turned up for the reserves at Altrincham in his Rolls-Royce, wearing a leather jacket and a cowboy hat!’