Manchester United’s headline summer signing Donny van de Beek has sent a pointed message to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer over his lack of playing time since his move from Ajax.
The United manager sanctioned a £40million deal for the Netherlands international during the most recent transfer window but he has been slowly eased into the first team picture by his new manager.
Van de Beek is yet to start in the Premier League and his lack of involvement in last Saturday’s stalemate against Chelsea was questioned by former United stars Gary Neville and Patrice Evra, with the latter claiming the midfielder was surplus to requirements.
The 23-year-old did start in the midweek win over RB Leipzig in the Champions League but was taken off midway through the second half, after which his team scored four times.
United host Arsenal on Sunday in a heavyweight Premier League encounter and Van de Beek admits it is the sort of match he wants to be involved in.
‘Players always want to play games. Training is also nice, but the games… this is why you’re playing football,’ stressed the ex-Ajax man.
“I think a lot of games means we can improve always and I am sure that we will win more if we stay in the focus.
“Arsenal have showed that they have really good players, and I mean we need to be focused. “
“We won and everybody’s happy and it’s good for the confidence and everything, but now we must go on to that game.
‘A lot of big games are coming up now. A lot of games. We need to stay in the focus and then I’m sure that we make more nice wins.’
Marcus Rashford, meanwhile, scored his first senior hat-trick in the victory over the Bundesliga side and Van der Beek has been impressed by his new team-mate’s impact both on and off the pitch.
He added: ‘He’s an amazing player. I see already from day one [and] the moment that I arrived here his quality, and he’s also a really good guy.
‘He’s always working hard and is really talented. I like him also a person, and I’m really happy for him. He’s already a big player and will show a lot more of his quality – I’m sure about that.’
