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Manchester United exited the Champions League at the group stage after their 0-1 defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
The Bundesliga champions did not even have to break a sweat as the hosts crumbled under pressure yet again, losing their fourth European game and 12th overall.
Injuries meant the options from the bench were mainly limited to academy graduates. Manager Erik ten Hag also did not have the option of calling upon Donny van de Beek as he was not named in the Champions League squad.
Donny loan stuck due to wage demands
The Dutch midfielder has played in two games this season, totaling 21 minutes of action and the club and the player are desperate to part ways.
The former Ajax star was linked with a summer exit but nothing materialised and now Eintracht Frankfurt are in pole position to get a loan deal over the line in January.
As per Bild (via Sport Witness), “talks are going well” between both parties but the player’s wages remain something of a “sticking point”.
Van de Beek is reportedly earning €7 million per year and that would make him “by far the top earner” in the German side.
The Bundesliga team are dead against breaking their wage structure to accommodate the United star.
Donny’s nightmare spell needs to end
If the loan deal is to successfully go through, United will either need to “pay part of his salary and make concessions” or the versatile star has to agree to take a wage cut and “give up money”.
Considering how desperate the Netherlands international is to play football regularly again, that does not seem to be too much to ask for.
Van de Beek has endured a nightmare spell at United since he arrived in 2020, starting only 23 times in more than three seasons.
Even Ten Hag’s arrival has done little to change his fortunes, with the midfielder starting only four times under his former Ajax coach.