Van De Beek Is Another Lampard – Steve McClaren

Steve McClaren has said that Donny van de Beek, an ex-Ajax midfielder, will challenge for Paul Pogba’s position at Manchester United.

Van de Beek recently revealed that Pogba could be made to pay for a lack of consistency if he does not step up next season.

According to him, Van de Beek’s style of play is similar to Frank Lampard’s and would definitely increase competition for the starting positions in the team.

He added that Manchester United will need lots of players for the competitions the club will feature in next season, so squad depth is key.

His words, “Van de Beek is exactly like Frank Lampard in his heyday; he gets in the box, scores, assists, his goal record of one in three is fantastic. He’s an excellent player,”

“He’s a little bit similar to Fernandes but I think Fernandes has got that pass that, where Van de Beek is in the box Fernandes will pick him out – Manchester United didn’t have that before.

“The only one I probably fear for, and it’s a debate that’s gone for a while, is Paul Pogba. Because you can’t play Van de Beek as your controlling, holding midfield player, he’s got to be an ‘eight’ or a ‘ten’, and at the moment Pogba is the ‘eight’ and Fernandes is the ‘ten’.

“Manchester United hope to have lots of games with the Champions League, etc. and Ole knows you need a strong squad, so maybe, he’s getting three of them so two can play in every game.

“But maybe because of Pogba’s inconsistencies and Ole wanting more consistency there, Ole is laying down the gauntlet for Pogba. At the moment no one is challenging Pogba in that position and Van de Beek will challenge him and challenge Fernandes.”

“With Pogba, there is a great player in there but you’ve got to find a way of getting it out of him in every game and across the whole 90 minutes.

“I do think Pogba has been a far better player since he’s come back. It seems that Fernandes has ignited his passion, he’s got someone he can play with and now Van de Beek is coming in too.

“You need competition at the top level. I think that’s what Van de Beek brings to Manchester.”