Wednesday, December 8, 2021 at 7:06 PM• Tom Rofekamp • Last update: 19:14

Rafael van der Vaart is very charmed by Arnaut Danjuma. After a dream start at his new club Villarreal, the 24-year-old left winger has been slightly less productive in recent matches, but Van der Vaart does not want to speak of a form dip. The analyst even compares Danjuma with former colleague Arjen Robben, as there is always a threat from the the Dutch international.

Since his arrival from Bournemouth, Danjuma immediately started scoring for his new club for 23.5 million euros: after eight official matches, the counter was already at five goals. After the won Champions League match with BSC Young Boys (2-0) on November 3, in which the born Nigerian still managed to find the net, production stopped at seven. However, Van der Vaart does not want to call it ‘sinking away’. “What is sinking?”, the former international says aloud.

“He doesn’t always play great for the Dutch national team,” continues Van der Vaart. “But something always happens, he has so much threat.” The analyst, on the other hand, lacks a killer instinct in Danjuma. “That’s what he’s missing, the scoring ability. Cristiano Ronaldo would never miss the opportunities he sometimes misses. Now I don’t want to compare him to Ronaldo, but it is the difference between becoming a real top striker or staying with Villarreal for the rest of your life.” Danjuma has 7 goals and 3 assists in 17 official matches at Villarreal. Last season, he was good for 17 goals and 8 assists in 37 official appearances for Bournemouth.

Finally, Van der Vaart compares Danjuma with former the Dutch colleague Robben. “I think we have a golden player in our hands. Who can make decisions, like Robben. When you handed him the ball, you knew something was happening. Danjuma has that too. If he gets the ball you will be on the edge of your seat.” Danjuma will play against Atalanta with his club Villarreal on Wednesday evening for a ticket for the knockout phase of the Champions League. The Spaniards are currently one point above Atalanta with seven points from five matches; Manchester United previously qualified as group head.