Manchester United are set to announce the signing of Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek. The player is likely to take the No 34 shirt at Olf Trafford, according to reports. The midfielder scored 10 goals and registered 11 assists from 30 appearances for Ajax last term as they successfully retained their Eredivisie title. United will be paying Ajax a £40million fee, with club legend Edwin van der Sar helping negotiations go through without a problem. Van de Beek’s favoured No 6 shirt is occupied by Paul Pogba at Old Trafford and he is set to take the No 34, as a tribute to close friend Abdelhak ‘Appie’ Nouri. Van de Beek was sat on the bench during a pre-season friendly in Austria in 2017 when Nouri collapsed on the field of play. Nouri suffered a cardiac arrest and was tragically left with permanent brain damage. "After the tragedy, I visited Nouri's family a lot. I spoke to them a lot and we shared our feelings. Mo (Nouri’s’s brother) always slept in the dame room as Nouri so I went to sleep in Nouri's bed," he said. Nouri wore No 34 at Ajax and that’s why Van de Beek is likely to do the same at Old Trafford. Meanwhile, Van de Beek will reportedly earn less than most may anticipate in his move to Manchester United from Ajax. He will earn €120,000-a-week at United, not including bonuses in his contract.
Source: Express/ *Join us on Telegram!