If the former Arsenal man maybe felt as if he had a point to prove – left on the bench for his nation’s Euro 2024 opener – then prove it he did.
Brought off the bench during the second-half with the scores level, it would perhaps be a stretch to suggest that the £26 million man laid the foundations for his side’s eventual victory.
But he certainly helped wrestle the momentum in their direction in the final half-hour in Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion.
Donyell Malen, the former Arsenal youngster who arrived at Borussia Dortmund via a prolific spell at PSV Eindhoven, was a menace on the right hand side. A bouncing powerball ball of purpose and endeavour, Malen’s directness, close control and and movement gave the Netherlands a different dimension following his incluision for the largely inneffective Xavi Simons.
Donyell Malen showing what Arsenal are missing
“I like him, Malen,” said Martin Keown, the Arsenal legend hailing a player who spent two years in the Gunners academy but never made a first-team appearance (BBC One, 16 June, 3pm).
“(Malen) had an outstanding season as well. He’s just a bit more efficient with his movement. He’s not really doing a lot of running, he’s just walking into space, he stays high and wide or he just steps into midfield.
“And it’s giving (the Netherlands) a bit of a platform.”
Malen, scorer of 15 goals and five assists in 38 games for Dortmund in 2023/24, may have just about done enough to give Ronald Koeman a selection headache ahead of the Netherlands’ clash with pre-tournament favourites France on Friday.
With Cody Gakpo causing problems on the left, Malen’s involvement from the start could turn the Dutch into one of the competition’s most fearsome counter-attacking sides. And that could come in particularly handy against a France side who are expected to dominate large spells of possession in the second group-stage fixture.
Netherlands face Kylian Mbappe’s France on Friday
“I look for potential,” one-time Real Madrid playmaker Rafael Van der Vaart told Rondo a few months ago, likening Malen to a certain Les Bleus superstar. “He’s so light-footed, so fast. A bit like what Kylian Mbappe has.
“Only, it doesn’t really work out with the Dutch national team. (Malen is) an amazing player. But if you want to become Mbappe, you have to show it every match.
“I wonder; does he get the most out of (his talent)? Dortmund is a good club, but not Real Madrid.”
Malen, meanwhile, has not ruled out a return to Arsenal at some point in the future. Still only 25, the one-time Ajax prospect obviously feels as if he has unfinished busines at a Gunners side who may be in the market for a right-sided attacker to ease the burden on an overworked Bukayo Saka.
“I think because I played as a youth player in England, it is always the dream to play in the Premier League,” Malen tells Voetbal Zone. “I want Arsenal, my favourite club. Yes (I would go back).
“I played there when I was younger. I really wanted to break through (into the first-team) there, so yes (I’d go back).”
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