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Steve McClaren says Donny van de Beek is “exactly like” Chelsea icon Frank Lampard in his prime, with Manchester United closing in on signing the midfielder.
The 23-year-old completed his doctor at the club and is expected to join Old Trafford on a five-year deal for a fee of £ 40.3 million.
Van de Beek helped guide Ajax to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2019 and recorded eight goals and five assists in the Eredivisie last season.
Former United manager McClaren believes the Dutch international reflects the ability of Chelsea’s all-time top scorer, Lampard, to burst into the area from midfield and find the back of the net.
“Van de Beek is exactly like Frank Lampard in his heyday; he gets into the box, he scores, he assists, his record of goals of one in three is fantastic, he is an excellent player, “McClaren told talkSPORT.
“He’s a bit similar to Fernandes, but I think Fernandes has that pass that when Van de Beek is in the box, Fernandes will select him; Manchester United didn’t have that before.”
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will have the unenviable task of trying to fit Van de Beek with the likes of Paul Pogba, Bruno Fernandes, Nemanja Matic and Scott McTominay in midfield.
McClaren expects Van de Beek to compete directly with Pogba for his place on Solskjaer’s side.
“The only one I’m probably afraid of, and it’s a debate that’s been gone for a while, is Paul Pogba,” added the former FC Twente manager.
“Since you can’t play with Van de Beek as your holding and controlling midfielder, it has to be an ‘eight’ or a ‘ten’, and right now Pogba is the ‘eight’ and Fernandes is the ‘ten’.
“Manchester United expect to have a lot of Champions League games etc. and Ole knows you need a strong team so maybe, maybe he will have three of them so that two can play in each game.
But perhaps due to the inconsistencies of Pogba and Ole wanting more consistency there, Ole is putting up the glove for Pogba.
At the moment, no one is challenging Pogba in that position and Van de Beek will challenge him and challenge Fernandes.
“With Pogba, there is a great player in there, but you have to find a way to get it out of him in every game and for the full 90 minutes.
I think Pogba has been a much better player since he came back. It seems that Fernandes has ignited his passion, he has someone to play with and now Van de Beek is also entering.
‘You need competition at the highest level. I think that’s what Van de Beek brings to Manchester. “
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