Manchester United are keen on Brian Brobbey but the Ajax forward has been told that Memphis Depay’s Premier League struggles should be a warning to him as he weighs up his future at the Eredivisie giants.
For every Ruud van Nistelrooy, prolific during his own spell at Old Trafford, there are countless Memphis Depays. For every Lisandro Martinez, multiple Antonys.
Reports suggesting that Manchester United could renew their interest in Brian Brobbey – who snubbed Erik ten Hag two years ago in favour of re-joining Ajax from RB Leipzig – have certainly divided fans and pundits alike, with Wim Kieft one of those who cannot get the thought of Depay’s miserable Red Devils spell out of his head.
Brian Brobbey warned off Manchester United move
“Here, in his own familiar environment, (Brobbey) is developing much better. But you are not immediately ready for a move to a top European club after one good season in the Eredivisie,” Ajax icon Kieft tells De Telegraaf.
“There are plenty of rumours going around. But here, in the Eredivisie, he plays against FC Volendam, Excelsior, Go Ahead Eagles, Heracles Almelo and RKC. In England or Spain, you are like Gakpo and Depay, against top defenders.”
Depay, like Brobbey, was a regular source of goals in the Netherlands. But – like so many Eredivisie exports – the former PSV Eindhoven captain failed to make the step up to a much higher level in England.
“Maybe his agent wants to make a quick profit from his current form. But, for Brobbey himself, another season of the Eredivisie would be best from a sporting perspective,” Kieft adds.
“At Ajax, he can become even stronger. Score more, gain more confidence, play even better and then he will join a major foreign club as an established name.
“Don’t let money be the determining factor.”
Ajax striker sent Memphis Depay warning
According to reports, Manchester United may look to bring in a more experienced centre-forward to provide competition for Rasmus Hojlund, with Brobbey only a few months older than a man who marked his 21st birthday with a typically emphatic finish in Sunday’s 3-0 triumph over West Ham.
Brobbey, meanwhile, feels very much like a ‘Ten Hag target’, given the manager’s penchant for Eredivisie additions and having celebrated two Dutch league titles alongside the powerhouse striker before swapping Ajax for Old Trafford in 2022.
Ten Hag, however, is expected to lose much of his power in the recruitment department once INEOS bring in an elite-level director of football.
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