Manchester United have had mixed success with their imports from the Netherlands over the years; for every Jaap Stam, there’s been an Alexander Buttner.
It’s not like United are the only English club to occasionally be burned by signings from the Dutch top flight, and their hits probably justify the misses.
United are about to sign Feyenoord’s Tyrell Malacia and have also been linked with Ajax trio Antony, Lisandro Martinez and Jurrien Timber.
We’ve looked at the 11 players United have previously signed from the Eredivisie in the Premier League era to see how they fared at Old Trafford.
Raimond van der Gouw
United signed Van der Gouw from Vitesse Arnheim in 1996, with the goalkeeper acting as a reliable understudy to Peter Schmeichel for six years.
He only made 60 appearances for the club during that time but played his part in United’s success, both as a player and as a goalkeeping coach.
Jaap Stam
After joining United from PSV in 1998, Stam helped the club win three successive league titles and was a key player in the famous Treble of 1999.
But Sir Alex Ferguson felt the centre-back was on the wane, selling him to Lazio for a fee of £15.3million in 2001, only for Stam to continue for another six years while collecting further trophies at Milan and Ajax.
“When I think of disappointments, obviously Jaap Stam was always a disappointment to me, I made a bad decision there,” Ferguson later admitted in 2013.
Ruud van Nistelrooy
Van Nistelrooy was the Eredivisie’s top scorer in back-to-back seasons between 1998 and 2000 as United agreed to pay £18.5million for his signature in a protracted transfer that was eventually completed in 2001.
Fortunately, he had no problem translating that impressive form to the Premier League and became one of the most prolific goalscorers in United’s history, scoring 150 goals in 219 appearances.
The former Netherlands international left Old Trafford under a cloud after falling out with Sir Alex Ferguson, but his scoring record speaks for itself.
READ: A tribute to Ruud van Nistelrooy and the playground art of goalhanging
Park Ji-Sung
Park caught United’s attention with his impressive performances for PSV and completed a £4million move to Old Trafford in 2005.
The former South Korea international quickly became a cult hero among supporters for his tenacious style of play, which saw him regularly relied upon by Fergie.
“He was truly fantastic, particularly in big games,” Ferguson told the…
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