Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek is struggling to move away from comparisons with Red Devils’ flop Henrikh Mkhitaryan following another underwhelming showing.
The Dutchman was handed his second consecutive start for the club against Aston Villa in place of the suspended Bruno Fernandes. It was an outing that did little to suggest he should be called upon more regularly with United slumping to a 3-1 defeat in the Midlands.
During the game, he was the target of severe criticism from ex-Premier League striker Clinton Morrison. Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, he said: “I think Bruno Fernandes is key for Manchester United. Donny van de Beek hasn’t played a lot of football.
“I watched him the other night against Real Sociedad and he looked a bit short, so I was surprised [to see him in the starting XI] and it’s a big call for [Erik] Ten Hag to put him in there.
“Donny van de Beek took about five years to play the ball out and that’s why he isn’t up to the pace with it. It was great play from Diogo Dalot, when Van de Beek gets there he should just spin it in the channels straight away.
" Marcus Rashford made a great run and can’t get back onside by the time Donny van de Beek plays it.”
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Van de Beek’s lack of awareness and speed is a worry that has been well founded at Old Trafford for some time. During Ole Gunnar Solskjaer ’s time at the club, United staff apparently discussed the issue behind the player's back, comparing the Dutchman’s struggles to that of Armenian playmaker Mkhitaryan.
The now 33-year-old arrived at Old Trafford in a big-money switch from Borussia Dortmund back in the summer of 2016 but scored just 13 goals in 63 outings before he was sold in an equally disastrous swap deal to Arsenal - Alexis Sanchez going the other way.
Mkhitaryan failed to convince at the Emirates Stadium too before he was allowed to join Italian giants AS Roma on loan.
Van de Beek, 25, joined United in a £40m switch from Ajax in the summer of 2020 but he has struggled to stake a claim in the first team with just 21 starts since, whilst he has scored just two goals - a huge downturn in productivity compared to his time in Amsterdam.
He was even allowed to join Premier League rivals Everton on-loan for the second-half of last season but made just seven appearances for the Toffees as they only just managed to escape from relegation to the Championship.
The Dutchman has two-and-a-half years left to run on the five-year deal that he originally penned at Old Trafford.
