On-loan Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek has picked out Luke Shaw as the most ‘underrated’ player he’s ever shared a dressing room with over the course of his career.
Van de Beek has struggled to live up to expectations at Old Trafford following a £35million transfer from Ajax back in 2020 and completed a January loan move to Eintracht Frankfurt in the hope of resurrecting his stuttering career.
Frankfurt have an option to buy Van de Beek outright for £9.5m in the summer but are not expected to activate that clause given the 27-year-old has been unable to nail down a regular place in the team.
During an interview with Dutch publication Ziggo Sport earlier this week, Van de Beek admitted he would welcome the opportunity to return to boyhood club Ajax, where he first made a name for himself as a hugely talented youngster.
‘Why not? Ajax has always been a special place for me, so we certainly cannot rule that out.
‘At Ajax only one thing matters: winning and becoming champions,’ he said.
‘I have also had mixed years due to injuries. But now I’m looking forward again.’
After a deeply frustrating few years, Van de Beek is ‘convinced’ he can turn his fortunes around if he puts in the hard yards and remains focussed.
‘If I keep working hard, I’m confident things will turn out fine,’ he added.
‘It is up to you to turn it around. I’m working on that. I am convinced of my own qualities.
‘If I stay fit and keep working hard, I will definitely be fine.’
After talking up a possible return to Ajax, Van de Beek was invited back to the Eredivisie outfit to conduct a quickfire Q&A with the club’s social media team and one of his answers has caught many by surprise.
Asked to name the most underrated player he’s ever played with, the Netherlands international replied: ‘Luke Shaw. Very underrated player. He’s very good.’
Shaw has been out with a thigh injury since February and there have been hopes the England international could return for United’s FA Cup final clash with holders Manchester City on May 25.
However, at his press conference on Thursday afternoon, Erik ten Hag revealed that Shaw had suffered a ‘minor setback’ and there is only a ‘very small chance’ the full-back will feature at Wembley.
Elsewhere in Van de Beek’s Q&A, the Dutchman touched on the close relationship he shares with Dennis Bergkamp, who was his coach when he rose through Ajax’s youth ranks.
The legendary ex-Arsenal forward also happens to be the father of Van de Beek’s partner Estelle, who gave birth to their second child earlier this year.
Quizzed on what he learned from Bergkamp, Van de Beek replied: ‘Enough… he was my coach in the academy when I was ten years old.
‘I had lots of conversations so I learned many things.’
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