Eriksen and Van de Beek need to be given time, says fellow Ajax graduate Seedorf

 Eriksen and Van de Beek need to be given time, says fellow Ajax graduate Seedorf

Clarence Seedorf does not believe Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek should not be written off yet as they struggle to make impacts at Inter and Manchester United respectively.

Like Seedorf, both players came through the heralded Ajax academy before making switches to the Premier League.

Eriksen enjoyed six-and-a-half successful years at Tottenham before joining Inter in January, while Van de Beek signed for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side ahead of the 2020-21 campaign.

Having found himself on the periphery of the team during his latter days at Spurs, Denmark international Eriksen was lacking momentum upon joining Inter and made only eight Serie A starts before the end of the 2019-20 season.

It has not gone much better for him this term, the 28-year-old making just three starts and failing to score or assist for Antonio Conte's side.

His days appear to be numbered at San Siro, with Conte stating Eriksen has had enough chances to impress and the club's CEO Giuseppe Marotta saying he will not keep players who want to be sold.

Seedorf, though, believes Eriksen's quality will ultimately shine through if the club is patient with him.

"Eriksen has been a well established, top player for years," the former Inter, Real Madrid and Milan star told Stats Perform News. "He may go through a moment where he's not having the same performance we're used to but he should not leave. He will be playing sooner or later.

"Adapting to a new country and club is not easy. There are many examples of top players that go from one club to another and couldn't find themselves. We need to give him some time for the club to embrace him fully."

Van de Beek, meanwhile, has struggled for game time since arriving at Old Trafford in a £40million move from Ajax.

The Netherlands international has yet to start a Premier League game, making six appearances from the substitutes' bench, although he impressed in United's 4-1 Champions League win over Istanbul Basaksehir on Tuesday.

Van de Beek made two key passes, completed 33 passes in the opposition half – second only to Fred – and boasted an 87.5 per cent passing accuracy in that game.

Seedorf is not concerned about Van de Beek's situation, however, and believes United have bought him for the long term.

"He just arrived and needs to go through the same process and struggle [as Eriksen] to adapt to all the things on and off the pitch," he added.

"I'm sure with his character he will find his way through. I don't think Manchester United bought him for immediate success. They have always brought in younger players to make sure in two or three years they will be one of the main players.

"Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I wish him all the best, obviously."