[ad_1]
Rio Ferdinand, former Manchester United defender (Photo: BT Sport)
Rio Ferdinand has backed Donny van de Beek to add goals for Manchester United after his £ 40 million move to Old Trafford was confirmed on Wednesday night.
The Dutch international completed a £ 40m transfer to Manchester United from Dutch Ajax to become the first arrival to the 20-time champion of England this summer.
Van de Beek has signed a long-term contract with Manchester United to bolster his midfield ahead of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s second full season in charge at Old Trafford.
The 23-year-old was a regular in Ajax’s first team for the past five seasons, scoring a respectable 41 goals in 175 games in all competitions for the Dutch giants.
Former Manchester United defender Ferdinand backed Van de Beek to succeed at Old Trafford after the Dutch midfielder signed a five-year contract with the club.
Donny van de Beek! Manchester United, the red shirt. What does he bring to this team? “Ferdinand told YouTube.
“He scores goals, he assists, he runs into the box, a good work ethic and an incredible brain. An Ajax player knows how to play football well.
“Edwin van de Sar, my old partner, put a crying emoji on Twitter. Is not happy! Know its quality, know its class.
Imagine Donny with people like Bruno Fernandes.
“I have a little statistic here; In the last three seasons, if you face any of the Premier League midfielders in terms of goal participation, where do you think you rank? I guess I said seventh. He is second only to Kevin de Bruyne.
“In the last three seasons he has scored 40 goals and has given 29 assists. Only De Bruyne has more! He’s amazing, he’s one of the best in the world, so he’s sitting in good company.
“Will it happen immediately? Time will tell. But what we do know is that Manchester United have a good player, a solid player, who understands the game.
“When we saw him in the Champions League, I saw a smart player. He gets in the box and then, bang.
“Ole, I’m with you on this one! Nice job.”
Van de Beek scored eight times and had five assists in 23 games in the Dutch top flight last season before the Eredivisie campaign was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Dutch international won the Eredivisie title and the Dutch Cup during his time at Ajax, as well as losing 2-0 to Manchester United in the 2017 Europa League final.
Van de Beek will be tasked with building a relationship with Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes in midfield for Manchester United in the 2020-21 Premier League season.
Manchester United have only signed Van de Beek in the 2020 summer transfer window so far.
The Red Devils will begin their 2020-21 Premier League season against Crystal Palace on Saturday, September 19.
PLUS: Manchester United latest news and views
PLUS: Soccer transfer rumors and gossip
