1. Champions League experience
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was quite frank in his assessment after the Premier League campaign wrapped up that he needs players next season capable of coping with the pressure that comes with Champions League football. Unfortunately, Jack Grealish hasn’t even played in Europe once in his career due to his ventures at Aston Villa.
Donny van de Beek, on the other hand, regularly plays in Europe and more often in the Champions League. Having progressed into the semi-finals with Ajax last season, he knows what it takes to succeed at the biggest occasions. With 5 goals and 3 assists in 17 Champions League appearances, the skilful Dutchman can empower our European campaign and won’t get fazed by the occasion like Grealish either.
2. Versatility
The thing about Grealish is he is bound by a single role at Villa, as their core playmaker who gets all the freedom to pull the strings as he wills. Van De Beek is a more enhanced midfielder in the aspect that he can adjust to different situations really well.
The Dutch midfielder can play in a variety of roles, such as attacking midfield, defensive-midfield, centre-midfield and even a false No.9! He knows how to structure his style according to different needs, while Grealish is more suited to the playmaker’s role – which is firmly held by Bruno Fernandes right now. With Van De Beek’s versatility, United would be getting a solution to many problems in midfield and have that extra goal-scoring figure as well.
3. Valuation
The major stumbling block in United’s pursuit of Grealish has turned out to be Villa’s unrealistic demands to sell him, especially after avoiding relegation. The Villains are said to be demanding £80m for Grealish, citing the Red Devils’ spending on Harry Maguire as the reason for their valuation.
But, in the current post-Covid-19 financial climate, the Red Devils can’t afford so much on someone like Grealish. Van de Beek, reportedly could be available for nearly half that price. Indeed, Ed Woodward is said to be confident of buying the Dutchman for £36m (€40m), which would be a great deal for someone as talented as him and also save United a lot from having to spend on Grealish.
Who would you want us to buy? Grealish or Van De Beek? Let us know in the comments or on our blog platform!
