Crystal Palace remain in negotiations with Manchester United over a loan move for Donny van de Beek after the father of his girlfriend, Dennis Bergkamp, triggered the talks.
Palace boss Patrick Vieira is pushing for a deal after his former Arsenal team-mate Bergkamp contacted him about Van de Beek, who is going out with the Dutchman’s daughter Estelle, with the pair expecting their first child this year.
United are open for Van de Beek to leave on a straight loan, providing there is a loan fee and his wages are paid in full.
Vieira is hoping to convince Van de Beek that joining Palace is a good move for him with guaranteed first-team football, while the Frenchman also wants more experience in his side for the second half of the season.
Valencia are also in discussions with United over the 24-year-old, but there are doubts whether the Spanish side could cover his salary.
Netherlands midfielder Van de Beek has struggled to break into the first team at Old Trafford since a £39m move from Ajax in the summer of 2020.
He has been a largely peripheral figure under both current interim manager Ralf Rangnick and former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer despite a goalscoring debut for the club, which incidentally came against Palace.
It is thought Van de Beek felt let down by Solskjaer after he had given him assurances over playing time.
But Van de Beek has also struggled to make an impact under Rangnick, having been restricted to just 380 minutes of action this season without starting a Premier League match.
He has just two goals and two assists to his name in 50 United appearances.
The player’s priority is to get more regular first-team football and if that is to be away from Old Trafford, the feeling is Van de Beek would maintain his value in the summer. Irrespective, van de Beek’s future will be re-assessed after the season ends when United have a new manager in place.
Vieira is very happy with his squad but feels they are lacking one or two experienced players with European experience. The Eagles boss said on Friday he is still looking to add to his squad in January.
Van de Beek had been the talisman of Ajax’s exciting young team under Erik ten Hag, which reached the Champions League semi-finals in 2019, scoring six goals in the competition and 28 more in over 100 appearances in the Eredivisie.
The midfielder has two-and-a-half years to run on his contract at Old Trafford, although United hold an option to extend the deal by a further year. Netherlands boss Louis van Gaal has not selected him since taking over last year.
‘Van de Beek concerned over Netherlands future’
Dharmesh Sheth told The Transfer Show that a desire to get back into the Netherlands squad is part of Donny van de Beek’s reasoning for considering a loan move away from Manchester United…
“Crystal Palace want to sign Donny van de Beek on loan until the end of the season. As far as Manchester United are concerned, I’m told they would consider allowing Van de Beek to go on loan if a suitable offer presented itself, both from a financial perspective and a footballing perspective.
“It’s thought United would only consider a straight loan deal. The contract of Van de Beek is on United’s side – he’s got a contract till 2025 and they’ve inserted a club option to extend that for a further year.
“As far as Van de Beek is concerned, his only priority is to get more regular first-team football. I think, in the back of his mind, is his Netherlands future. He’s not been selected for a squad since Louis van Gaal took over as Netherlands manager. That’s purely because he’s not playing and Van Gaal has made it clear to him he needs to be playing regular first-team football if he is to force his way back. It’s looking rather slim, the chances of him making the World Cup squad.”
