Donny van de Beek: does he have a future at Man Utd & what transfer fee could they get for him?

Donny van de Beek’s agent has again risked incurring the wrath of Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, following his latest interview in the Dutch media.

The player’s associate, Guido Albers, revealed that Van de Beek was indeed in talks with Everton ahead of the transfer deadline, about a potential switch to Goodison Park.

But it’s an issue that shows no signs of abating soon, with the midfielder clearly unhappy at his situation, while Solskjaer evidently doesn’t trust the No.34 in high-pressure games.

What’s been said?

Albers told Ziggo Sport that he had been in discussions about a possible move for Van de Beek to Everton, before Solskjaer blocked any potential deal.

“On Monday night [before deadline day] we received a call from Solskjaer and the club who told us that a transfer was out of the question and that he had to report himself to training the next morning.

"The perspective now is that we stated that Donny is not a Carabao Cup player, or FA Cup player, or to play only in European games. Donny went to England to play in the Premier League.”

This follows on from comments he made last week, claiming Van de Beek had also received offers from Italy and Germany.

“[We’re] disappointed, but also assuring for him, so that he will get his chance, and will get his minutes,” Albers said. “But this will become clear in due time. He’s been promised that before, but we came to a clear agreement about this with the club, so we have all faith that it will happen now.”

Questions being asked

This isn’t uncharted territory for Solskjaer, who has previously had to deal with comments from Paul Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola surrounding the Frenchman’s future.

That incident resulted in a wave of media questions, which the United boss regularly was forced to swot away. He can expect similar queries when he reports for Friday’s press conference, and all round this isn’t an enviable position for Solskjaer to find himself in, as he must try and reconcile with a clearly disgruntled player.

It also isn’t a great look to the board, players and fans, that a first-team star - via his agent - is so publicly criticising the United manager. Nor will it encourage future Dutch or Ajax talents to make the move to Old Trafford.

In addition, there’s the repeated question about why exactly Solskjaer signed Van de Beek in the first place, with Pogba and Bruno Fernandes already in his bloated squad.

Finding game time

It makes getting minutes on the field a seemingly fruitless task for the Netherlands international, who is trying to oust two of the world’s best creative midfielders.

While Solskjaer could certainly have done more to integrate him into the side, he has tried Van de Beek in the centre of the park, in a No.10 role and even out wide, yet nothing has yielded anything close to an impressive run of form.

So it makes the task of playing Van de Beek regularly almost impossible, unless Pogba or Fernandes were to pick up a long-term injury.

Getting value for money

The obvious solution is to sell the 24-year-old, but how much of a fee could the Red Devils expect to recoup from the £35m they paid last summer?

Covid-19 has drastically reduced the spending power of clubs across Europe - although not, it appears, the continent’s pre-eminent side - meaning that gaining a significant fee for an out of form asset is tricky.

It’s for that reason, perhaps, why Van de Beek has remained at United beyond the deadline, simply because they can’t find a willing buyer.

Can Van de Beek do more?

The former Ajax man may be hoping his agent’s comments put pressure on Solskjaer to give him more minutes, but some of the problems lie closer at home.

Van de Beek simply hasn’t done enough when on the pitch for United and isn’t deserving of game time at present. The midfielder has failed to adapt to the pace of Premier League football and he often looks too laboured on the ball, while his passing has lacked poise and penetration.

For an attack-minded player he offers little goal threat and needs to drastically increase his output when in possession.

With Scott McTominay out, there is also an opportunity for Van de Beek to adapt to a slightly more withdrawn role, yet even this scenario would lead to an offensive player making way.

But it really is hard to see a happy ending for both player and club, one in which Van de Beek plays regularly, performs to a high standard and doesn’t reduce game time for Solskjaer’s more-fancied options. The writing could be on the wall for United’s needless and wasteful investment.