Rafael van der Vaart can imagine that Donny van de Beek will play in a less offensive role in the future. Van der Vaart says in the VARA Guide that the Manchester United midfielder is not the number ten type he likes and foresees a similar transformation for Van de Beek as Davy Klaassen has undergone.

Ajax took over Klaassen from Werder Bremen in the summer transfer period. “I am enthusiastic about the development he has gone through”, says Van der Vaart. “I think he is a ‘Mark van Bommel type’, especially when he gets a little nastier. And I mean that in a positive sense. Klaassen left Ajax as number ten and comes back as a controlling midfielder, who is still z ‘ He scored n goals. He did that very well. What was especially striking in the Champions League was that Klaassen, quite normally, played the ball in the right color. That was a sharp contrast to the unrest of others. “

Van der Vaart believes that Van de Beek, who hardly gets around to playing at Manchester United, can undergo such a transformation. Van de Beek has to tolerate Georginio Wijnaldum in the Dutch national team in the number ten position, while against Bosnia-Herzegovina (3-1 win) Klaassen as controlling midfielder was preferred over him.

According to Van der Vaart, Van de Beek and Jurgen Ekkelenkamp of Ajax are comparable types. “Van de Beek and Jurgen Ekkelenkamp are running number ten, as it is called”, says the former the Dutch international. “They have to get the ball in front of their feet and put it in. But if they don’t, it could just happen that they have three touches per half. And that’s not the number ten that I like to watch. What I want. say, maybe Van de Beek and Ekekelenkamp, ​​like Klaassen, are also more controlling midfielders. “