ANPTen Hag and Van de Beek (2019)
NOS Voetbal•vandaag, 11:23
Trainer Erik ten Hag believes that Donny van de Beek was a completely different player at Manchester United than at Ajax. The Dutch trainer said this at a press conference about his compatriot, who has been loaned to Eintracht Frankfurt since last week.
Van de Beek went from Ajax to Manchester United in 2020 for approximately forty million euros. However, injuries prevented him from playing much in England. This did not change when Ten Hag arrived in 2022. 19-time international Van de Beek has played eight league matches since his arrival.
“From the first moment I came here to Manchester United, he was not the player he had been at Ajax due to injuries,” Ten Hag said about Van de Beek, with whom he worked successfully in Amsterdam. “He was often unavailable and then he struggled for a long time to come back from injury.”
ANPVan de Beek and Ten Hag laughing at United’s training in July 2023
The coach calls the injuries and the competition in midfield the biggest reason for Van de Beek’s few playing minutes. “We decided in the summer to rent him out, but the club we wanted did not come and then his opportunities are scarce, because we also make agreements with other players in that position.”
United’s midfield was already busy last year, including Casemiro, Scott McTominay, Christian Eriksen and Bruno Fernandes. Last summer, Sofyan Amrabat and Mason Mount were also recruited.
‘Pressure always high’
Ten Hag says Manchester United is one of the most difficult clubs to play for. “The pressure is always high.”
The 53-year-old Ten Hag adds that United is one of the best clubs to play for, provided you have confidence in yourself. “The best challenge. It mainly depends on the character of the player.”
Manchester United will play an FA Cup match against Wigan Athletic, a club that plays in the third English level, on Monday evening.
2024-01-08 10:23:31
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