The agent of Manchester United misfit Donny van de Beek admits that he is concerned the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo will push his client further down the pecking order at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo caused a stir around the globe when he chose to return to United for a second spell following three seasons with Juventus.
But it appears that not everybody is overjoyed to see the 36-year-old back at the club, as Van de Beek could see his playing time reduced further despite receiving assurances he would feature in 2021-22.
“Cristiano arrived on Friday which we knew was bad news for us. Pogba plays on the left, and with Cristiano’s arrival it means another extra player in midfield, with Pogba moving away from the left,” agent Guido Albers affirmed to Ziggo Sport.
“We had conversations with Solskjaer and the board. We took the initiative to find a club and our search ended up at Everton. We opened talks with Marcel Brands and Farhad Moshiri.
“On Monday night [before deadline day] we received a call from Solskjaer and the club who told us that a transfer was out of question and that he had to report himself to training the next morning.”
Despite those fears, Albers is confident that his client will have the opportunity to shine.
“The perspective now is that we stated that Donny is not a Carabao Cup player, or FA Cup player, or to play only in European games. Donny went to England to play in the Premier League,” he added.
“The way the conversation went this time [with Solskjaer] compared to last summer… things are much more clear now. I have full expectations that Donny will get his chance now.
“Donny worked extremely hard in the summer. He only had seven days off. The rest of the summer he trained to become top fit. He is totally ready.”
Van de Beek was a key part of the Ajax team which thrilled Europe on their way to the Champions League semi-finals in 2018-19, dumping out Ronaldo and Juve along the way before losing out to Tottenham in a thrilling last-four clash.
The midfielder spent one further season in Amsterdam before moving to United at the start of the 2020-21 season, but he has so far failed to live up to expectations.
During his debut term he played just 19 times in the Premier League, with most of those appearances coming as a substitute, and he has remained on the bench for all three of his side’s matches to date in the current term.
