The Dutchman is on the verge of a move to Old Trafford but has been told his new environment will take some getting used to
Donny van de Beek will have to mentally adjust to playing for a club the size of Manchester United, says former Red Devils forward Robin van Persie.
Van de Beek is expected to be confirmed as an upcoming United player after the club agreed on a regional stake of £ 40 million ($ 53 million) for the 23-year-old Dutch international.
Van Persie knows all about making the leap from the Eredivisie to the Premier League having moved to Arsenal from Feyenoord at 20 in 2004.
Eight years later he moved to Old Trafford, helping the team lift the Premier League title in what turned out to be Sir Alex Ferguson’s final season at the helm of the club in 2012-13.
Van Persie drew on these experiences to warn Van de Beek about the challenges involved in such a high-profile transfer.
Although he has full confidence that his compatriot is a success, he says playing for Manchester United will be completely different from what Van de Beek has experienced so far in his career, both on and off the pitch.
“Donny van de Beek is 23 and a good age to move into the Premier League,” Van Persie wrote in a column for The telegraph.
“I was a bit younger when I went to Arsenal, and in the locker room I was considered a player for the future. Winning the UEFA Cup with Feyenoord meant nothing. The Premier League is a completely different world.
“Donny will be brought in as a big signing from Manchester United, but he will find that those other 22 players were also ported as a ‘big sign’. One with an even bigger transfer. [fee] compared to the other.
“It means he has to be there right away and he has to mentally adjust to that. Because Manchester United is a beast of a club through and through.
Manchester United’s size also has an impact on Donny’s planned commercial activities in the future.
“In my first year at United that number was zero, in the last year I had to show up every week.
“When I was with Marcus Rashford recently, I asked him how often he has to do something commercial now. He couldn’t remember the last free afternoon after a workout.
“This is a little different than taking a siesta after a workout.”
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