Manchester United recently suffered a very shocking 3-1 defeat against Aston Villa as there were a lot of criticisms for the manager Erik ten Hag for some of his decisions that backfired. The primary one was starting his compatriot Donny van de Beek. The former Ajax midfielder got his first start of the season against Aston Villa and he simply could not live up to the expectations.

Even former Manchester United captain and defender Rio Ferdinand could not hold himself back in criticizing the Dutch midfielder who was very below par for the Red Devils. However Ferdinand defended Ten Hag for showing some trust in the Dutchman as the fans went bizarre against the manager as well as they felt it was a meaningless decision which resulted in a humiliating defeat.

While Ferdinand is criticizing Van de Beek, he also knows the capability of the player. However sadly he has not been the same ever since joining the Premier League as he has not even shown glimpses of that Ajax brilliance in a Manchester United shirt. But still Ferdinand feels that the manager deserves some backing as he is showing some faith in his players and more importantly the duo have worked together at Ajax.

“The manager knows him [Van de Beek], he knows what he has under his bonnet what he’s capable of. He has not got anywhere near doing that while he’s been at Manchester United or in England for that matter,” Ferdinand stated on Vibe with FIVE.

The former England defender also shared how he has watched him live for Ajax and felt how he was a very unique player at what he does. He felt that Van de Beek would be one of the 3-4 players who get big value for his qualities.

“I watched him probably four or five times live when he was in that Ajax team. I know that was a few years ago now but in those games he was one of the three or four players who you thought there’s going to be value for this guy because of what he does,” Ferdinand revealed.

But any way the Dutchman has failed to show that capability in a Manchester United jersey and hence with every passing his time at the club is coming to end. If he wants to stay he needs to step up his game and deliver sooner than later. Ferdinand has openly said that the Dutch midfielder has failed to make mos tout of his opportunities as he lacks rhythm. He also shared how he plays too deep for United and that makes it difficult for him to enter the penalty area which was always his strength back in Amsterdam.

Overall if Manchester United decide that they have seen enough of him, one cannot blame them as the Dutchman has not done something exceptional which has changed the mind of the managers or other people at the club. Even Ferdinand feels he has had no impact ever since he joined United. “He just hasn’t been able to find the rhythm, the momentum, the form at all in a Man United shirt and so the performance that we saw wasn’t any different to what we’ve seen so far with Manchester United. No impact.”