Ajax head coach Erik ten Hag has confirmed that midfielder Donny van de Beek is set to make the move to Real Madrid this summer. The Netherlands international was one of the many standout performers for the Eredivisie outfit last term where they were able to secure a domestic double as well as reach the Champions League final.

Speaking in a press conference, Ten Hag acknowledged that Van de Beek has been a crucial player in the club’s ranks but they could not convince him to stay after the interest from Real Madrid, he said: “He [Van de Beek] was very important for us last season and he started with the same enthusiasm, freshness and a lot of energy this time around as well. His departure is a loss, but we knew it could happen. We didn't want to lose him and we did everything we could to keep him at Ajax, but when a club of this calibre enters the picture, it's difficult.”

Former Arsenal striker Robin van Persie believes the Gunners can reach the level of Liverpool and Manchester City, should manager Unai Emery find the cohesion within the first-team squad. The north London side impressed at different stages of the 2018/19 campaign under Unai Emery but ultimately, they fell short of the Champions League places for the third season on the bounce.

Speaking to BT Sport, Van Persie feels the Gunners can close the gap to the Reds and Citizens in the long-term, but for that, Emery needs a group of players, who can showcase consistency over an extended period of time, he said: "They have to connect – really connect – as a team. That is Unai Emery’s job but also the players.

PSV Eindhoven winger Steven Bergwijn is understood to be eyeing a potential move to Bayern Munich this summer, his agent has revealed. The 21-year-old had a fantastic 2018/19 season with PSV where he contributed 14 goals and 12 assists in the Eredivisie, but that was not sufficient to hand his team with the title, considering the dominant season from Ajax.

Since then, he has been regularly linked with a move to Bayern with the club said to hold an interest in signing him and agent Fulco van Kooperen has acknowledged that the attacker is prepared to remain patient over the same, he told ESPN: “We have never, never said we are losing patience. Bayern are a great and huge club and it's great they like Steven. They can take all the time they need."

Times journalist Duncan Castles has urged Manchester United to opt against a potential move for Leicester City defender Harry Maguire. The England international has been strongly linked with the Red Devils since the previous summer transfer window and reports have emerged that they could break their transfer record to pursue the central defender.

Speaking on The Transfer Window Podcast, Castles said that Maguire has been performing above expectations over the past few years but he does not possess the qualities for the price tag mentioned. He added that the centre-back may be good with the defending and set-piece threat but he is not gifted with much pace.

Dutch footballer Robin van Persie has said that the unity within the Manchester United squad during the 2012/2013 season contributed to the Premier League success. The Red Devils won the English top-flight title with a comfortable 11-point gap over Manchester City and Van Persie was the main architect upfront with 26 goals to his name.

Speaking to Manchester United’s official website, Van Persie indicated that the team during that campaign was united and the achievement was a great team effort. He added that every player within the squad played their part and gave the example of Chicharito Hernandez, who got a crucial winning goal at Chelsea.

Dutch footballer Robin van Persie has indicated the ambition of stepping into coaching, once he steps down from his playing career at the end of the season. The 35-year-old is currently in the ranks of boyhood club Feyenoord where he has impressed with 17 goals across all competitions for the club.

Speaking to Belgian outlet Sport/Foot, Van Persie indicated that he learned plenty during his initial years at Arsenal and he is hoping to share the same knowledge with upcoming talents in the future, he said: “Whether it was Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, I learned from them by asking questions, but also watching them. At first, it was just analysis: how does Pires make his decisions? What’s Ljungberg doing? How does Henry choose his position? I would watch Bergkamp move constantly between the lines and thought: Wow! That’s what I wanted to achieve. I learned so much in those first few years at Arsenal that I want to give all that back.”

Feyenoord manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst has said that the players made it tough for themselves against Heracles after they were down to 10 men for most of the second period. Feyenoord were the dominant side during the course of the first half, but they could only secure a slender 1-0 lead heading into the break.

Thereafter, Heracles made a quick comeback with the equaliser and this made it trickier for Feyenoord, who had Nicolas Jorgensen sent off shortly after the hour mark. Despite this, they managed to eventually come up triumphs with a 2-1 scoreline after Steven Berghuis’ second strike of the game but Van Bronckhorst was far from impressed with the proceedings.

Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk has said that the team have a long way to go after they succumbed to a 3-2 European qualifier defeat to Germany. The Germans were the dominant side in the first period as they secured a 2-0 lead, but the advantage was nullified after the break with Matthijs de Ligt and Memphis Depay levelling the scores.

However, that was not sufficient to secure them a point on the night after Nico Schulz came up with a late 90th-minute winner for the Germans. Speaking after the game, Van Dijk acknowledged that the Dutch outfit still have work to do before they can compete efficiently with some of Europe’s elite nations.

PSV Eindhoven captain Luuk de Jong has been left frustrated after the team managed just a draw against Heerenveen on the road this weekend. The Dutch champions went two goals down in the first period for the second successive occasion but they managed to come from behind to secure another 2-2 draw.

Speaking after the game, De Jong was unimpressed with the defensive organisation of the team after Heerenveen managed to score twice from just three shots on target, he said: “We conceded another two goals and had to fight until the final minute to snatch a point.We won a point at the death, just like we did last week. It’s the same old story for us on the road.

Feyenoord striker Robin van Persie has backed Frenkie de Jong to succeed with Barcelona from the forthcoming season. The Netherlands international recently penned a pre-contract to join the Spanish champions in the summer and this ended the long-standing saga regarding his future beyond the current campaign.

Speaking to NOC, Van Persie said that the Ajax midfielder has taken a great step to move to the Camp Nou when he had been approached by Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain previously. He added that the youngster should become a better player with the Catalan giants where he should be sharing the same dressing room with the likes of Lionel Messi and Sergi Busquets.