Donny Van De Beek could have been an instant Goodison Park hit

By Ally Darlow

In the days since the end of the transfer window, it’s become clear that Donny Van De Beek could have signed for Everton (AD).

Manchester United’s £35million man (BBC) Dutchman has been starved of minutes at Old Trafford since his move from Ajax.

At just 24-years-old the ex-Ajax star featured just 19 times for a total of 512 Premier League minutes, completing 90 minutes in the league on just three occasions (Transfermarkt).

If Van De Beek had sealed his move to Everton the chances are he would find himself playing a lot more football.

At Goodison Park, with the ongoing issues in the #10 role owing to both James Rodriguez and Gylfi Sigurdsson’s differing situations, Van De Beek would have been perfect.

The young midfielder has shown exactly what he can do when given the chance to play during his time at Ajax.

In his 175 games for the Dutch champions Van De Beek scored 41 and assisted 34 goals from midfield (Transfermarkt).

He also famously helped Ajax on their run to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2019, scoring against both Juventus and Tottenham in that run.

At Everton the player could seamlessly fit into Rafa Benitez’s system, slotting into the 4-4-1-1 either in place of Richarlison in the #10 role or as one of the two midfielders in the four.

On a loan deal, this would have been a move that had no risks attached at all.

Van De Beek would surely feature more at Goodison Park than he will at Old Trafford and getting minutes will only help his cause.

However, the Dutchman is now set to stay at Old Trafford until at least January, meaning his minutes will likely be greatly limited once again.

Whether Everton can step up and make another attempt to sign the Dutchman in January is yet to be seen, but it would certainly be a good fit for the Merseyside club.