Van de Beek makes Barcelona plea as Man Utd star looks for ‘change of scenery’

Donny van de Beek has made it clear that he would be open to a move to Barcelona, according to reports in Spain.

The Manchester United midfielder endured a miserable first season in English football following his £35million transfer from Ajax last summer.

Signed with the hope of becoming a regular under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the Netherlands international was limited to just four Premier League starts.

It left his place at Euro 2020 in doubt, but in a cruel twist of fate, after being named in Frank de Boer’s squad, he was ruled out of the tournament with injury.

Van de Beek has faced pressure from his homeland to make a move this summer, or risk his career stalling due to limited opportunities.

Sport claim that the 24-year-old’s representatives have made it clear he could be ‘seduced’ by a move to the Nou Camp, even if it was only on loan.

It adds that Van de Beek is unhappy with his current situation at Old Trafford and is chasing an immediate change of scenery.

Barcelona themselves are scrambling to make a midfield transfer after missing out on Gini Wijnaldum.

The Liverpool midfielder looked destined for the Blaugrana, only for a late offer from PSG sealing the deal.

Van de Beek is reportedly one of several midfielders that have been touted as potential alternatives and although no formal response has yet been made, it is understood they are looking for a different profile of signing.

Ronald Koeman is desperate to add more resilience to his midfield and is more likely to sign a player in that mould, rather than a creative player.

Barcelona have previously held an interest in the player however and were desperate to land him before he joined Manchester United.

Meanwhile Dutch footballing legend Ronald de Boer believes United shouldn’t lose faith in the midfield player and predicted fans will see his real talent soon enough.

“I hear in training, he does well, so there is still the confidence there but of course you want to play regularly,” De Boer told Sky Sports last month.

“You can’t play every game, but what he did this year was not what he had in mind.

“I’m confident in the boy, I know him a little bit, I trained him in his youth, he’s a great character, he’s a cool boy, he knows what he wants. Even in the European Championship, you might see the real Donny van de Beek.

“I always use the example with [Mauricio] Pellegrino in Barcelona, my ex-teammate. He didn’t play well in our team and everyone thought he was a terrible defender and then he goes to Valencia and plays two Champions League finals.

“Sometimes it doesn’t fit your jacket, but sometimes somewhere else it does fit. I think he needs to find out for himself and make the right choice but I’m confident we’re going to see the real Donny van de Beek soon.”