Former Dutch international Wim Kieft insists ‘you do not say no to Manchester United’ as the Premier League giants cast their eye over Feyenoord captain Orkun Kokcu.
How Erik ten Hag could have done with a player like Kokcu during a punishing second half during Thursday’s Europa League draw with their eternal bogeymen Sevilla at Old Trafford.
After a one-sided first ‘45, United took their foot of the gass alarmingly after the interval, coughing up possession again and again as the La Liga strugglers grew in confidence prior to those late own goals.
For all of Casemiro and Marcel Sabitzer’s qualities, ball progression is not really high among them. It is no secret that Erik ten Hag wants a midfielder in the Frenkie de Jong mould, and Kokcu ticks more boxes than most.
The Feyenoord skipper loves to pick up the ball in front of his own backline before storming through the thirds, slaloming through challenges while turning defence into attack in an instant. Kokcu does not merely keep things ticking over either. The Dutch-born Turkey international is a master of beating the pass and breaking the lines.
Manchester United like Feyenoord captain Orkun Kokcu
According to Feyenoord-specialist website 1908, Kokcu has admirers at Old Trafford.
Kieft, a PSV Eindhoven legend, wonders if Old Trafford is a step too big for a 22-year-old still in the early days of his career. But Kokcu, he adds, would struggle to rebuff Ten Hag’s advances if United step up their interest in the coming weeks or months.
“Of course, you don’t say no to Manchester United,” Kieft tells Veronica Inside. “But I would rather go to a club like Brighton.
“I think United are still a bit too ambitious at this stage of his career.”
According to Veronica Inside presenter Wilfred Genee, Eredivisie leaders Feyenoord want up to £40 million for a man who rose through the ranks at De Kuip, evolving from an attacking midfielder into one of Europe’s most promising deep-lying playmakers under Arne Slot.
“I think that is a lot of money,” Kieft adds. “But these kinds of amounts are paid nowadays in England.”
“He has seen the light,” explains former Dutch defender Ronald de Boer; the Haarlem-born schemer silencing his critics while putting concerns over his work rate and physicality behind him (Ziggo Sport).
“You have to make sure you have an athlete’s body. He has that now. You can see from everything that the boy is so comfortable in his own skin. He looks incredibly fit.
“That is why he is having such a great season, because he can of course play great football.”
Kokcu has even been likened to Real Madrid and Croatia legend Luka Modric.
“He is ready for the leap to a great club like Juventus,” explains former Serie A ace Momo Sissoko. “After all, players from the Eredivisie are having a big impact in Italy. He is the protagonist at Feyenoord. The best in his league.
“I see him playing in different roles. He made a good impression on me both as a central and as an attacking midfielder. He is perfect as a pivot in a three-man midfield.”
“For me, (Kokcu) has the same quality of play (as Modric). He has the potential to reach his level.”
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