Man Utd new boy Donny van de Beek picks new shirt number in heartwarming tribute to tragic Ajax pal Abdelhak Nouri
DONNY VAN DE BEEK will reportedly take the No34 shirt at Manchester United in tribute to tragic Ajax pal Abdelhak Nouri.
Van de Beek is on the brink of a £40million switch to Old Trafford from the Dutch giants.
He will be Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first signing of the summer after undergoing a medical while on international duty.
And United fans are sure to be thrilled with his signing after beating off the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona.
However, there were question marks over Van de Beek’s United shirt number, with Paul Pogba currently occupying his No6 jersey.
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And despite many tipping him to take Juan Mata’s No8, the Mail claims Van de Beek will instead wear No34.
That’s in tribute to Nouri, who suffered severe brain damage after collapsing with a cardiac arrest during a game in 2017 while wearing the No34 jersey for Ajax.
He has since woken from his coma and is communicating with his family.
But they are set for a bitter legal war with Ajax after the Dutch side reportedly cancelled his contract.
Speaking before Ajax won their 34th title in 2019, Van de Beek told De Telegraaf: “Appie was so smart.
“He just joined the first team and said, ‘I’m going to ask for shirt number 34, because the 34th title, we’re going to make that happen’.
“After his cardiac arrest I kept thinking about his words and I was certain I wasn’t going to leave Ajax until we got that 34th championship.
“When I see him, it hurts me too much. I’ll be upset for a couple of weeks and won’t sleep well.
“It hurts intensely and I’ll never get used to it. I want to be with him every day because I miss him a lot.”