Manchester United's midfielder Donny van de Beek completed his move to Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt on a six-month loan deal, the club confirmed on Monday.
Van Beek, 26, moved to Man Utd in 2020 from Ajax as he was wanted by former United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer but the Dutchman failed to break into the playing XI and spent the majority of his time on the bench.
“Donny van de Beek has signed for Eintracht Frankfurt on loan from Manchester United,” the club said in a brief statement.
“The 26-year-old Dutch midfielder will join the Bundesliga side for the remainder of the 2023/24 season.
“The deal comes on the first day of the 2024 winter transfer window, which remains open until February 1.”
Frankfurt, who are currently sixth in the Bundesliga, will have the option to buy the midfielder on a permanent deal by paying £9.5m plus £2.6m in add-ons.
With Euro 2024 ready to be held in Germany in June 2024, Van de Beek will aim to get as much playing time so he can get a chance to represent the Netherlands in the European championship this summer.
The 26-year-old played a total of 62 matches for the Manchester club and only managed to score two goals while providing as many assists. Although 62 games would seem too much, he was mostly used as a substitute and played 2,152 minutes in four years.
It must be noted that Van Beek emerged as one the finest top talents in the world during Ajax’s fairytale run in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) which saw them going all the way to the semi-final of the tournament where they were eliminated by a last-minute goal from Lucas Moura of Tottenham Hotspur.
Many clubs were in a race to sign the Dutchman but he eventually signed for United for £40million. However, things didn’t go his way as the 26-year-old has only made six starts for the club in the top flight since then, and even a reunion with Erik Ten Hag did not manage to increase his overall game-time.