Former Liverpool winger Jamie Redknapp believes that new Manchester United signing Memphis Depay has all the attributes designed to produce a world-class player, but he questions whether the Dutch international would be a success at Old Trafford.Depay was a transfer target for almost every top club in Europe.
Paris St Germain were thought to be moving close to sign the player and this led to United jumping and before anybody else. The transfer was sealed well before the end of last season for a fee of £ 25 million. He comes from the Dutch league, which often exaggerates the statistics of players.
Even then,Depay promises to be an exciting prospect to look forward to in the Premier League. He has a wide array of skills coupled with incredible confidence, but Redknapp says that he could even become the new Ryan Babel or there is the possibility of seeing the next Robin van Persie. Redknapp has recalled the examples of several players who did extremely well in the Dutch league only to struggle to make even a slight impact in the top leagues. The quality of Dutch league has fallen alarmingly bad in recent decades with a gulf in class separating the likes of PSV Eindhoven and Ajax with the rest.
“He certainly looks like he rates himself and while I am all for confidence, he needs to deliver. Is he another RvP, or another Ryan Babel, who came to Liverpool with promise and confidence but couldn’t hack it? The 21-year-old will be box office but the road from Holland is littered with players who couldn’t match their form from the Dutch League.He’s got some swagger and while he scored 39 goals in 64 league games (plus 26 sub appearances) for PSV, Manchester United is a different ball game,” said Redknapp.