Manchester United are apparently going to hijack Real Madrid’s move for £49 million Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek, according to reports. However, it is suggested that the Old Trafford club would offer £13 million less than the Spanish club, seeing as they have seemingly stalled in their move for the player.
It was last season when the 23-year-old showed his ability in the game which helped the Dutch club reach the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League. Van de Beek has been linked to United a few times, especially last summer when rumours suggested that Paul Pogba would be leaving the club, however, that never happened.
The midfielder has seen team-mates Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt both leave Barcelona and Juventus whilst Hakim Ziyech will join Chelsea when the transfer window opens this summer. The Daily Mail has reported that Real Madrid were seeking to sign the player for £49 million this summer but the coronavirus pandemic may have stopped that.
The pandemic has caused many problems for football clubs since mid-March when world football was suspended and despite the fact that the Bundesliga has already resumed with La Liga, the Premier League and Serie A all resuming this month, fans being kept out of stadiums will mean more financial problems for clubs around the world.
It is suggested that Real Madrid may have stalled their approach for the player because of the coronavirus, seemingly not having the luxury to bring in wholesale changes this summer, which could be good news for or other clubs interested in signing the player. Since coming through the academy at Ajax, Van de Beek has scored 41 goals in 175 appearances.
United could well try and sign the player for £36 million this summer, which is not quite the £49 million that Real Madrid could have been offering but it still a good return for the player. If United have to reduce the fees of players this summer, other clubs will have to do the same. It could well be an interesting summer.
