Forgotten Man Utd star ‘accepts it’s time to leave’ – Fabrizio Romano

Robin Bairner

• 8 Jun 2023 09:22 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek believes that he has to leave Old Trafford this summer in order to get his career back on track.

Signed from Ajax for €39 million in 2019 amid much fanfare, Van de Beek has struggled to make any kind of impact in the Premier League.

After scoring on debut against Crystal Palace, he fell out of favour with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and has failed to make an impression on subsequent managers. It had been expected that Erik ten Hag’s arrival at Old Trafford might change his fortunes but he managed only 10 appearances and 294 minutes last season, which was prematurely ended by injury.

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When he did take to the field, he was invariably disappointing. Indeed, his fate appeared sealed as far back as November, when he started a Premier League match against Aston Villa but turned in an insipid display.

With Ten Hag looking to recruit in midfield, Fabrizio Romano, writing in the Guardian, reports that Van de Beek has given up on his dream at succeeding at Man Utd and is looking for an alternative club.

The Netherlands international midfielder expects to be fit for pre-season training, which should give him a platform to better attack next term.

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What next for Donny van de Beek?

Where Van de Beek’s future lies is unclear. He has been linked with a move back to Ajax at various times during his difficult period at Manchester United, while there are doubtless clubs around the Premier League and Europe’s big-five leagues that remember the form that made the Red Devils spend so much money on him in the first place.

Major clubs, though, will be fearful over his lack of playing time during the last three years and, particularly, the injury woes he has suffered with Man Utd over the last 12 months.