Donny van de Beek will join Everton on loan but no buy option will be included in the deal; the Toffees will cover the midfielder's wages during his time at Goodison Park; Crystal Palace and Valencia also held talks about signing Van de Beek
Monday 31 January 2022 19:37, UK
Donny van de Beek is undergoing a medical in Liverpool ahead of his loan move to Everton from Manchester United.
The Netherlands international's wages will be paid in full by the Toffees, who will not have an option to make his move permanent.
Crystal Palace and Valencia were also in talks to sign Van de Beek during the January transfer window, but he has opted for a switch to Goodison Park.
Palace began negotiations with United after Dennis Bergkamp - the father of Van de Beek's partner - triggered talks.
Palace boss Patrick Vieira was pushing for a deal after his former Arsenal team-mate Bergkamp contacted him about Van de Beek, who is in a relationship with the Dutchman's daughter Estelle, with the pair expecting their first child this year.
Valencia were also in discussions with United over the 24-year-old, but there were doubts about whether the Spanish side could cover his salary.
Van de Beek has struggled to break into the first team at Old Trafford since a £39m move from Ajax in the summer of 2020.
He has been a largely peripheral figure under both current interim manager Ralf Rangnick and former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer despite a goalscoring debut for the club.
It is thought Van de Beek felt let down by Solskjaer after he had given him assurances over playing time.
But Van de Beek has also struggled to make an impact under Rangnick, having been restricted to just 380 minutes of action this season without starting a Premier League match.
He has just two goals and two assists to his name in 50 United appearances.
Van de Beek's future will be re-assessed after the season ends, when United will have a new manager in place.
Van de Beek had been the talisman of Ajax's exciting young team under Erik ten Hag, which reached the Champions League semi-finals in 2019, scoring six goals in the competition and 28 more in over 100 appearances in the Eredivisie.
The midfielder has three-and-a-half years to run on his contract at Old Trafford, although United hold an option to extend the deal by a further year.
Donny van de Beek's arrival at Old Trafford caused no shortage of excitement. Darren Fletcher described him as a "bargain" at £39m. Ole Gunnar Solskajer talked up his "fantastic" quality. A giddy Rio Ferdinand addressed him as "Sir Donny" on Twitter.
The 24-year-old had attracted interest from a host of top European clubs while at Ajax, his outstanding performances during their run to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019 marking him out as one of the most exciting young midfielders around.
But his move to Manchester United has been a story of frustration and stalled progress. Van de Beek made only four Premier League starts in his first season. This time around, the Netherlands midfielder is yet to make one.
Van de Beek's biggest obstacle at Manchester United has been the presence of Bruno Fernandes.
Van de Beek played his best football for Ajax in the No 10 position, scoring and creating goals at a formidable rate, but by the time he arrived at Old Trafford in September 2020, Fernandes was firmly established as United's most important player in the position.
The Portugal international had made a transformative impact following his arrival from Sporting Lisbon eight months earlier, scoring eight goals and providing seven assists in his first 14 Premier League appearances to help United secure a third-placed finish.
He has continued in the same vein ever since.
Fernandes has scored more goals (25) and contributed more assists (17) in the Premier League than any other Manchester United player since the start of last season. He has also played the most minutes (4,879).
Van de Beek, by contrast, has played just 582 minutes in the same time frame. A player who enjoyed major prominence at Ajax has had to settle for a peripheral role throughout his time at United.
There have been occasional flashes of his quality - most recently with his well-taken goal against Watford in November - but his attacking output has not come close to matching Fernandes' on the rare occasions he has been thrown into the side.
For many Manchester United supporters, there is frustration more effort has not been made to accommodate Van de Beek elsewhere in the team, but that always looked challenging.
There was no obvious role for him in Solskjaer's 4-2-3-1 formation - he is too offensively-minded to play in the midfield two, and not quick or powerful enough to occupy one of the wide positions - and interim manager Ralf Rangnick has now reverted to the same system having unsuccessfully trialled a 4-2-2-2 set-up following his appointment.
Solskjaer talked about Van de Beek and Fernandes complementing each other's qualities following the former's arrival at the club back in 2020 but 18 months on neither he nor Rangnick has found room for them both in the same team.
Tellingly, they have only started six games together in all competitions since the start of last season.
The clock is ticking. Who will be on the move before the transfer window closes at 11pm on Monday January 31?
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