Netherlands head coach Louis van Gaal has proclaimed his admiration for Arnaut Danjuma after the reported Liverpool target’s flying start to La Liga life with Villarreal, as translated by Football Oranje.
If reports are to be believed, the Premier League pace-setters had scouts at last week’s topsy-turvy Old Trafford clash between Manchester United and Villarreal.
And Danjuma could hardly have picked a better time to produce one of the finest performances of his career. He tortured Diogo Dalot throughout while setting up Villarreal’s opener with the sort of inch-perfect assist that was his trademark at Bournemouth last season.
This was no flash-in-the pan performance either.
Since moving to Spain in a £21 million deal last summer – a fee that already looks a bargain – Danjuma has scored five goals in eight games, two during a man of the match performance against Real Betis last time out.
And while the Nigeria-born wide man was omitted from the Netherlands squad for the international break, Van Gaal has said Danjuma will get his chance to shine sooner rather than later – provided he maintains his purple patch.
Van Gaal: Liverpool target Danjuma has been ‘doing great’
“He has changed clubs. He did that quite late (in the window) and he didn’t play in the first phase (of the season) either,” says former Manchester United boss Van Gaal, explaining why Danjuma won’t play in the Netherlands’ World Cup qualifiers against Latvia and Gibraltar.
“He has been doing great in the past four games and can be there (in the squad), but I haven’t decided on that. I don’t need you for that, to see he’s doing well.”
“Do you think the KNVB (Dutch FA) has no scouts? I have to tell you honestly that we cleaned up the list two weeks ago. It contained 100 players and that seems a bit too much to me. But indeed, Danjuma is there.
“We are watching everything and I am really happy he is doing so well. Two goals again and decisive at the highest level. I can’t imagine he won’t be there next time.
“He can also suffer a dip, that’s also possible.”
Danjuma is one of a number of exciting left-wingers linked with a move to Liverpool recently.
What, we wonder, does that mean for the soon to be 30-year-old Sadio Mane?
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