Rio is right! Van de Beek has been wasted by Man Utd
Karan Tejwani
- 9 Nov 2022 07:15 CST
- 3 min read
Donny van de Beek has endured a tough time at Manchester United having struggled to make a mark in the first-team set up.
He had recently been given opportunities in the Europa League and Premier League but generally struggled to impress for the team, which has raised further doubt about his future at the club.
There was a belief that he would be able to revive his Manchester United career following the arrival of Erik ten Hag but that hasn’t proven to be the case for the Dutchman.
READ: Donny van de Beek has sealed his Man Utd fate
Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has spoken about Van de Beek’s future at the club and believes he isn’t being helped in his cause to make an impact.
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Ferdinand speaks on Van de Beek
Speaking on his podcast, Vibe with Five, Ferdinand spoke about Van de Beek’s struggles at the club: “You get him in and around the box, this guy can finish.
“The problem with the way he’s been deployed at Manchester United is that he doesn’t ever get in the box, he doesn’t get the opportunity to get in there and show his best parts of his game.
READ: Revealed: Man Utd turned down two bids for transfer flop Van de Beek
“He hasn’t been able to find rhythm, momentum or form at all in a Manchester United shirt,” Ferdinand concluded and he may have a point.
It’s been clear since his Ajax days that Van de Beek works best off the ball to make space for himself and his team-mates, and there have been glimpses of that.
In the loss against Aston Villa, there were several instances of that, and the problem has come in the supply – he’s not been supported right as he gets in the right positions.
🗣 Erik ten Hag: “I know he [Van de Beek] can do better because I know [him] very well, but he delivered what I expected in terms of positioning and pressing, in terms of transition. But I think he can be more of a threat to an opponent’s goal — that’s his biggest quality.”
— UtdDistrict (@UtdDistrict) November 5, 2022
It’s not the case of him not doing much on the ball, but rather, his talents are being ignored despite getting into the best positions to make the best use of him.
He’s smart at drawing players towards him and breaking defensive lines – something that needs to be utilized more and his true potential won’t be recognised until he is supported right by his team.
