Ajax chief executive officer, Edwin van der Sar has confirmed that 23-year-old Donny van de Beek will be allowed to leave the Dutch club this summer. The former United goalkeeper, however, stated that the player would not leave the club on the cheap following the coronavirus pandemic which has suspended world football.

United were linked to the midfielder last summer amid the uncertainty surrounding the future of French midfielder Paul Pogba, however, with the player remaining at the Old Trafford club, United did not need to attempt to sign the player. With that uncertainty still surrounding the player this summer, they may make a move for Van de Beek.

This season in the Eredivisie, Van de Beek has played a total of 37 times in all competitions, scoring 10 goals and assisting a further 11, which is a good rate for the midfielder. The Eredivisie was cancelled at the end of April after the Dutch Government cancelled all sporting events until at least September. There were no champions, relegations or promotion.

Van der Sar has stated that the Dutch club values the players highly who reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League last season, Van de Beek being just one of those. It is suggested that the 23-year-old could also be a target for the likes of Real Madrid and Juventus, who are both seeking to better their squads ahead of the new season. Van Der Sar, speaking to Reuters, said:

“In January last year, people said we were going to lose seven or eight players but we lost only two key members.

“The big clubs such as Bayern Munich have said the benchmark fee will go down in the next few transfer windows. But it’s easier for them to say because they are the buyers.

“Of course, the €150 million – €200 million (£131 million – £175 million) transfers are gone.

“But I think there is still a lot of value for players who come from Ajax. Well educated, experienced in winning and playing European football.

“Last year, we made verbal agreements with [Andre] Onana, [Nicolas] Tagliafico, Van de Beek to stay another season and then we look to help each other and find the next step in their careers.

“Nothing has changed. There won’t be a 50% discount. The clubs can forget about that.”

Hakim Ziyech was sold to Chelsea earlier this year for £36 million with the player leaving the Dutch side this summer for the London club. United could try and do a similar deal but it has been reported that Van de Beek would prefer to move to Spain, which is something that United would need to venture to see if it was true.

That said though, unless Pogba does end up leaving the Old Trafford club this summer, it would seem unlikely that another midfielder would be brought into the club, unless they specialised as a defensive midfielder, which is something that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will need to sign sooner or later with Nemanja Matic not getting any younger, despite a rise in form.

United find themselves with a rather strong midfield at this moment in time with Pogba, Bruno Fernandes, Scott McTominay, Fred and Matic as the experienced members of the position with the liked of James Garner and Dylan Levitt coming through from the U23s – although them spending a season away from the club on loan would be good for them.

Van de Beek joined the Ajax academy back in 2008 and played for Jong Ajax in the Eerste Divisie for three seasons from the 2014/15 season, making a total of 35 appearances, scoring eight goals and 10 assists. However, he made his Ajax debut in the Eredivisie during the 2015/16 season, playing at both levels until the end of the 2016/17 season, and to date has made 175 appearances, scoring 41 goals, assisting a further 34.

Manchester United could miss out on signing Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek as Newcastle United have an interest in signing the player, according to reports. The 23-year-old has been on United’s radar for the last year after making a name for himself after his performances in the UEFA Champions League last season with Ajax reaching the semi-finals.

Reports coming out of France via Le10Sport report that the Magpies are interested in signing the player with their takeover deal close to completion and the club seeking to become one of the big clubs in the Premier League with a massive cash injection to increase the quality of players at the club.

The 23-year-old is valued at around £44 million, according to the reports, which is a good fee for a player with his ability and career ahead of him. If Newcastle’s takeover is completed they could be bankrolled by Saudi-backers with them becoming the richest club in the Premier League, based on the money available to the clubs owners.

Newcastle have also been linked to another player who has previously been linked to United – Kalidou Koulibaly. Napoli would want upwards of £90 million for the central defender this summer, something United could afford but the money would be better spent in attacking options with United possibly seeking a cheaper alternative in defence.

It is even suggested that Newcastle could be seeking former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino or even a return to the club for Rafael Benitez as the clubs manager, replacing Steve Bruce. Van de Beek is a player that many United supporters wanted the club to sign last summer, but he decided to stay put at Ajax.

At the time, Paul Pogba had told the media that he wanted another challenge, seemingly wanting to leave United and speculation was rife. However, the Frenchman did not leave the club which negated United seeking to sign another midfielder – although with the injuries to the midfield this season, it may have been a good but for United.

This season, which seems to have ended for the Erdivisie club, Van de Beek has made a total of 37 appearances in all competitions, scoring 10 goals and assisting a further 11 – playing a total of 3,171 minutes of football. Ajax could have won their 35th Eredivisie title this season, instead, no club will be awarded the title in the Netherlands.

United will have many other options if the 23-year-old signs for another club this summer, not that he has been linked to the club for a while, but could be a contender should Pogba leave for pastures new. United have been hotly linked to Borussia Dortmund winger Jadon Sancho, Aston Villa attacking midfielder Jack Grealish. Van de Beek’s agent has spoken about interest, saying:

“The interest has been – and that is also known – for a long time and from several clubs.

“We will see what will come out of that in the coming weeks. I dare not say anything about it at the moment. I can’t say anything about it because a number of things are just confidential.

“The situation will have changed for each club and we have to look closely at that.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will likely have other midfield targets if he needs to make a move but new addition Bruno Fernandes, who signed for the club in January has done well so far and seems to be solving United’s lack of creativity, scoring three goals and four assists in his nine appearances so far. This could be a big summer for United, and every other club.

Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek is reportedly interested in a move to the Premier League this summer with either Manchester United or Tottenham Hotspur both mentioned. This comes from Dutch football expert, Marcel van der Kraan, who was talking to talkSPORT on Monday morning.

The 22-year-old was pivotal for Ajax last season, helping his club to win the Eredivisie title and come close to the UEFA Champions League, beaten in the last seconds of the game by Spurs, who were beaten in the final by Liverpool. Van de Beek played a total of 57 matches for Ajax last season, scoring 17 goals, assisting 14 more – averaging a goal every 242 minutes.

The player signed a new contract with the Dutch champions in January 2018, which runs for another three years. Current reports suggest that the player is linked to Spurs for £45 million with the manager, Mauricio Pochettino thinking that he could be a good replacement for Christian Eriksen, who has stated his desire to leave the North London club this summer.

The 22-year-old could also be seen as a replacement for Paul Pogba at United if the Frenchman does leave the club this summer with Real Madrid and Juventus both interested in the FIFA World Cup-winning midfielder. Speaking on the Alan Brazil Breakfast Show on talkSPORT on Monday morning, Van der Kraan, said:

“Donny van de Beek has his eyes set on the Premier League.

“I think he’s a proper Premier League player – he’s got a big tank, he’s got the education from Ajax, he can play in more positions in midfield.

“I think he’s got his eyes set on a club like Manchester United or Tottenham Hotspur.

“I’ve been talking to his agent, and he said if that would materialise it would be something right up his street.”

Barcelona has also been mentioned amongst the number of clubs interested in Van der Beek this summer. They have already signed Ajax teammate Frenkie de Jong, a deal which was completed in January with the player moving to the Catalan club from the 1 July 2019. They are also in the running to sign defender Matthijs de Ligt this summer with United apparently ruling themselves out of the battle for the talented defender.

The 22-year-old spoke about the links to Barcelona after the UEFA Nations League final, in which the Netherlands were beaten by Portugal, which brought an end to the season. Van de Beek suggested that it was not true, which makes you wonder what is going to happen. He did, however, say that he was happy at Ajax, as all players at current clubs end up saying. Van de Beek said:

“It’s not true that they have asked about me, a lot of things have come out in the newspapers, but I don’t know anything. I have a contract and we will see what happens, but I am happy at Ajax.

“Of course it’s nice that my name is linked with Barcelona, but I have to play more and be better and better. Later, we will see what happens in the future. You never what could happen in the summer.”

The Dutch international came through the youth ranks at Ajax, starting his career playing for Jong Ajax in the Eerste Divisie. Between the 2014/15 and 2016/17 seasons, he made a total of 35 appearances, scoring eight goals. The 22-year-old made his debut at senior level during the 2015/16 season, playing for two seasons in both teams. He has since played 130 times for Ajax, scoring 29 goals.

The player is a central midfielder but has a more offensive role within a team. Van de Beek has excellent control of the ball and a great eye for passing. He links up with the more attacking players and is dangerous inside the box. Former Ajax captain, Joël Veltman once stated that Van de Beek “works very hard and can play between the lines.” This all sounds very good, especially for a team like United, who are currently rebuilding.

The player has not suffered many injuries whilst playing senior level football, so there are no problems that anyone should be worrying about. However, it does not mean he cannot get injured. Predominantly playing as a central midfielder, the player can play as an attacking midfielder, behind the striker, which would bode well for United, especially if they miss out on Bruno Fernandes this summer.