Will Ajax be able to keep Donny van de Beek this summer?

After much speculation over the past year, Donny van de Beek will face a transfer dilemma this summer: stay with Ajax or leave for another club?

Ajax fans who attended the team’s away league win against Heerenveen in March should cherish the memories from the game. Not only will it be quite some time before they see their club once again, but the fixture might have been Donny van de Beek’s final match in the team’s famous red and white colors.

Van de Beek has been heavily talked about in transfer rumors ever since his breakout campaign last season. Teams then began to show their interest in securing a deal for the young Dutch talent. It almost seemed inevitable that he would tag along with Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt in leaving the club last summer, but a transfer deal never transpired. However, this upcoming summer may very well be the one where the club says goodbye to another homegrown star.

Club officials sense that a departure may be on the horizon. Ajax chief executive Edwin van der Sar recently touched on the possibility of exploring a transfer for van de Beek.

“Last year, we made verbal agreements with [Andre] Onana, [Nicolas] Tagliafico and van de Beek to stay another season, and then we look to help each other and find the next step in their careers,” van der Sar said. “Nothing has changed.”

Those same teams that were heavily rumored to sign van de Beek last year may come knocking again — and for good reason.

Van de Beek is a dream midfielder for any manager because he offers versatility on the pitch. If a manager is in need of an attacking midfielder for the 4-2-3-1 or diamond 4-4-2 setup, van de Beek can slot into either formation and provide the creative work rate needed for such a role. The Dutch talent can also operate as a traditional central midfielder and exert a lively presence in both attack and defense. To top it off, he has all of the tools to play as a holding midfielder in a double pivot setup, which he has showcased for club and country.

When on the ball, van de Beek has his eyes set upfield; he aims to progress possession deep into the final third. He is an adventerous passer and one who does not constantly rely on safe passing options. Sometimes, this mentality garners positive results, such as with line-breaking passes into the penalty box. But in other instances, he is prone to dishing off passes that wind up trickling over to an opponent. Still, his overall production as a ball-advancing midfielder makes for a promising playmaking talent.

In defense, van de Beek is mobile and active in scouring for whoever has the ball. Like on the offensive end, he possesses an aggressive mentality when on the defense. He often moves out of position to track down the ball carrier, which creates overloads. This play style often works to his benefit, such as this past season in Eredivisie where he recorded a two tackles per game average, according to WhoScored.

It is plays like the one below that exemplify his patient but aggressive manner in how he takes on challenges. He simply aims to win the ball back by striving to create just enough separation between the ball and the ball carrier, which then allows him to haul in the loose ball.

Van de Beek is not capable of being a player who can join a team and solve the entirety of its midfield problems on both sides of the ball. However, his versatility and simplistic play style can help nearly every powerhouse European club one way or another.

Even in what will be an unpredictable summer transfer window, teams are still sure to line up to inquire about van de Beek and potentially lure him away from the defending Dutch champions.

Van de Beek already has his preferences on what he looks for in a potential move.

“My feeling must be good at a club,” Van de Beek said. “How much do they want me? But I also have to fit in with the system that is being played and of course, I also want to have an overview of playing minutes.”

Many teams make sense for him from a tactical perspective, including Juventus. The current Serie A leaders have recently been in the transfer rumor mill over its interest on a swap deal between Miralem Pjanic and Barcelona’s Arthur. They could look to instill more youth into their midfield with the possible addition of van de Beek as he could take either Sami Khedira or Blaise Matuidi’s starting minutes.

As mentioned, van de Beek is a versatile midfielder, which Juventus could use more of with its squad. Over the season, they have operated under the diamond 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 formations — both of which are suited for van de Beek’s play style. Their style of play calls for midfielders to provide quick relay passes coupled with vertical movement upfield. Again, van de Beek fits the bill with both tasks.

As a passer, van de Beek is not a high-volume distributor like many of Juventus’ midfielders. Still, he makes the most out of every touch and has the wit to aggressively push play upfield while in the opponent’s half. In the Eredivisie play this past season, van de Beek produced at a 0.22 xA per 90 and a sound 1.38 completed passes to the penalty area per 90, according to Wyscout. Both per 90 figures are higher than any Juventus central midfielder with at least 1,000 minutes played in Serie A this season, according to Football Reference. Granted, this should be of no surprise due to van de Beek’s high positioning upfield, but he does not always occupy these areas of the pitch considering his shared duties as a base midfielder.

Real Madrid could also become a viable destination for the 23-year-old. Van de Beek surely has the tools to provide an on-ball impact, but his defensive expertise also makes him a formidable fit. For one, van de Beek is an avid presser and exerts effort into every pressing shift, which would bond well with Real Madrid’s organized pressing unit. He marks at a fair 3.41 recoveries won in the opposition half per 90 in league play this past season, according to Wyscout.

It is worth noting that if van de Beek were to join Real Madrid, he would be in for a challenge to earn minutes due to the team’s deep depth at the position. Youngsters Reinier and Martin Odegaard may also pose competition for van de Beek down the road considering their potential as creative playmakers too.

Other teams such as Chelsea and Arsenal could also jump into the van de Beek sweepstakes this summer.

Needless to say, there is always the option that van de Beek stays for another season. This route might not have been one that many would have bet on a couple of months ago. But due to the uncertain financial complications stemming from the current absence of world soccer, many powerhouse clubs may not be in the market for adding high-priced players. Nonetheless, Ajax could wind up looking at a possible transfer fee in the range of €45m–€60m for the Dutch talent.

Still, van der Sar will not be slashing off the price on a potential transfer regardless of the current situation at hand.

“There won’t be a 50 percent discount,” van der Sar said. “The clubs can forget about that.”