Donny van de Beek was delighted when Manchester United appointed his former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag last year but the midfielder’s struggling fortunes at the club have not changed.
The Dutch midfielder, 26, was signed from Ajax in a £35million deal by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer back in 2020 but has struggled to establish himself as a first-team regular at Old Trafford. Van de Beek has started just six Premier League matches across three seasons at the club.
The former Ajax ace played just 10 times for United during Ten Hag’s debut campaign in the Old Trafford dugout, making just four starts, before having to undergo surgery after suffering a season-ending knee injury in early January’s three-goal home win over Bournemouth.
That incident sums up Van de Beek’s misfortune during his time at United and came at a time when he was enjoying more minutes on the pitch due to the club’s hectic schedule across four competitions. It was a cruel moment that heightened his frustrations since joining the club.
Ten Hag is the same coach who utilised him heavily at Ajax. However, the Netherlands international has still been a peripheral figure under the current United boss as he was under Solskjaer, the coach who signed him, and interim United boss Ralf Rangnick.
The midfielder blossomed into a star at Ajax when Ten Hag was boss. Having already made 42 appearances across his first two seasons at the Amsterdam giants, scoring once, he grew into a pivotal figure as Ajax regained their domestic dominance and enjoyed successes in Europe.
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Van de Beek bagged 13 goals in the 2017/18 campaign, when Ten Hag came in mid-season, before growing into a key figure alongside Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong in the 2018/19 season which encompassed a league title and Champions League semi-final.
Indeed, the midfielder bagged the winner in the semi-final first-leg victory at Tottenham and Ajax came within minutes of reaching the showpiece event before being denied by a Lucas Moura hat-trick. After a tough few years at United, it was assumed that Ten Hag’s appointment would hand Van de Beek a much-needed boost.
Van de Beek showed two indications upon the news that he was pleased to be reunited with Ten Hag, as he liked an Instagram post from Ajax which had confirmed the move before the midfielder gave a thumbs up when asked if he was happy about the decision.
Having returned from a less than memorable loan spell at Everton, Van de Beek was a part of Ten Hag’s squad but featured sparingly – occasionally filling in on the odd occasion when the near ever-present Bruno Fernandes was rested.
It appears increasingly likely that Van de Beek will leave United in the near future to end an unsuccessful period in which the Dutch midfielder has failed to adapt. He has been training in recent months in a bid to regain fitness following his knee injury and should be fit to resume first-team action in the opening weeks of next season.
