Leicester City will attempt to sign Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek on loan in January with an option to buy, according to Jeuneus Footeux.
The Netherlands international has been with the Red Devils since the 2020/21 season, but has played just 1855 minutes across 53 appearances in all competitions.
It was anticipated that his fortunes would improve this season after reuniting with his former Ajax manager Erik ten Hag, but that has not been the case so far.
Van de Beek has been limited to only 19 minutes to date and it is reported that the Dutchman could push for an exit when the transfer window reopens in January.
Leicester seem to be preparing a loan bid with a £13 million buy option. The Foxes have identified Van de Beek as a replacement for contract rebel Youri Tielemans.
Tielemans has entered the final year of his deal with the Midlands outfit, and could be sold at the beginning of the year if he has no plans of renewing with them.
United should part ways with Van de Beek in January
Van de Beek had an injury-plagued loan spell with Everton earlier this year, but it was anticipated that he could be handed a lifeline at United with Ten Hag’s appointment.
However, this has not happened. Van de Beek is currently the fifth-choice central midfielder in the squad behind Scott McTominay, Christian Eriksen, Casemiro and Fred.
Ten Hag did say that Van de Beek is better equipped from the number 10 position, but he has hardly played in that role either with Bruno Fernandes being an undisputed starter.
The Netherlands star will be hoping for a change in fortunes in the coming weeks. Should the current situation persist, a mid-season exit appears a genuine possibility.
United would ideally want to recoup the £35 million paid to Ajax, but a loan deal with a reasonable buy clause could be acceptable. The Foxes will need to pay much more than £13m.
There is the option of swapping Van de Beek for Tielemans, but we don’t see that happening with United having concerns over his ‘mobility’ and ‘top speed’ to fit into Ten Hag’s system.
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