Donny van de Beek’s honeymoon period at Eintracht Frankfurt may be already coming to an end with criticism coming the way of the Manchester United loanee after just a few weeks in the Bundesliga.
Jadon Sancho, with an assist on his second Dortmund debut and winning a penalty in his very next outing, has certainly wasted no time in kick-starting his career following that long and drawn-out Old Trafford departure.
The same cannot be said, however, of some of Manchester United’s other mid-season exports. Hannibal Mejbri’s rather reckless Sevilla bow earned the card-happy midfielder a rather public dressing down from his new La Liga boss.
Donny van de Beek, meanwhile, already appears to be facing some rather awkward questions from the Frankfurt fanbase.
A 45 minute performance last week in which he completed only eight passes – with an accuracy of just 62 per cent – is certainly not the makings of a good first impression.
Donny van de Beek completes only five passes
“Has Van de Beek already missed his chance?” muses the German website Fussball News.
“After a disappointing performance against FSV Mainz 05 (Frankfurt winning 1-0 thanks to a late Mario Gotze winner), it was already over at half-time.
“Is the loan from Manchester United not getting back on track at Eintracht Frankfurt? The 26-year-old is currently a long way from the performance that made him a highly sought-after midfielder at Ajax.”
Questions asked of Manchester United loanee
Van de Beek, as part of the Ajax team who came within touching distance of the Champions League final under Erik ten Hag back in 2019, made a name for himself as one of the most reliable goalscoring midfielders in European football. Since that ill-fated £35 million move to Manchester United, however, Van de Beek has found the net a grand total of three times in his last 72 appearances at club level.
And, against Mainz, the Dutchman simply ‘didn’t pose any threat’ in the final third.
With this being a Frankfurt short not exactly short of quality in the midfield areas, it might not be too much of a stretch to suggest that a repeat of that ineffective Mainz display is something Van de Beek could do without.
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