Ralf Rangnick wants to keep Donny van de Beek beyond the January transfer window despite the Manchester United midfielder’s severe lack of playing time.
Van de Beek made a paltry two Premier League starts in 2021 – both of them in May when former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer heavily rotated the team ahead of more significant matches against Liverpool and Villarreal in the Europa League final.
United signed Van de Beek in a £40million deal from Ajax 16 months ago but his last meaningful league start was on December 6 in 2020 at West Ham, where he was substituted at half-time.
Van de Beek has started in 19 out of a possible 86 United games and was an unused substitute for the 31st time in the 3-1 win over Burnley.
The 24-year-old’s chastening time at United has cost him a place in the Netherlands national squad under new coach Louis van Gaal, who has overlooked Van de Beek in his three squad selections so far this season.
Van de Beek was prepared to join Everton on loan late in the summer transfer window but Solskjaer blocked the move and Rangnick believes United should not let Van de Beek go in this month’s transfer window.
When asked what Van de Beek had to do to play, Rangnick replied: “Well, just work hard. So far, as I have got to know him he’s got a top mentality, he works hard in every training session, is a team player through and through and there will be games where he gets his chance to play.
“I also had a long conversation with him last week about that and, again, of course, it’s difficult for him right now because he also wants to play for the Dutch national team to qualify for himself and play in the World Cup in Qatar and, in order to do that, he needs that game-time here.
“But I still believe we should keep him, he should stay here definitely until the end of this season and try to get as much game-time as he possibly can.”
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