Go to Real Madrid’: £40m ace Arsenal sold is just like Kylian Mbappe, pundit says
The Dutch international wasted little time in clapping back at Rafael van der Vaart ahead of Dortmund’s Champions League last-16 victory over PSV Eindhoven, dismissing the former Tottenham and Real Madrid star’s concerns that his potential is going unfulfilled.
But Van der Vaart may still have a point.
Donyell Malen, the former Arsenal starlet who admitted recently that he is keen on a second stab at life with The Gunners, finds himself right on the line between good players and great ones. And Van der Vaart feels that, with his searing pace earning comparisons with one Kylian Mbappe, Malen can still reach a new level if he can add some consistency to his game.
Donyell Malen dreams of Arsenal return
“I look for potential,” the one-time Ajax playmaker tells Rondo. “He’s so light-footed, so fast. A bit like what Kylian Mbappe has. Not that I’m comparing him to Mbappe, but Malen does have it in him.
“Only, it doesn’t really work out with the Dutch national team.”
Malen, who is reportedly valued by Dortmund at around £40 million and was linked with Manchester United as part of the deal that took Jadon Sancho back to Germany, has 13 goals and four assists from 32 appearances this season.
Van der Vaart wants to see a more consistent return, however, from a man who would surely struggle to displace Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli if he does get his dream return to Arsenal somewhere down the line.
‘He should go to Real Madrid’
“(Malen is) an amazing player,” Van der Vaart adds. “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. I think he should go there.”
HITC Football understands that Arsenal are in the market for attackers this summer. Mikel Arteta’s side appear to want a more classic ‘number nine’, however, with Ivan Toney and Dusan Vlahovic under consideration.