Manchester United’s move to sign Joshua Zirkzee comes with a stark warning from a former superstar who made the move from Serie A.
Zirkzee, who has a £34million release clause in his contract, is edging closer to a move to Old Trafford 23 years after Juan Sebastian Veron made the move from Lazio.
Costing a British record transfer fee of £28.1million, the Argentine midfielder was regarded as one of the best midfielders in world football and the missing piece of Sir Alex Ferguson‘s jigsaw.
Speaking at Veron’s unveiling, Ferguson said: “I think I’ve always searched for this. I never thought I’d spend this much money on a footballer.
“I think he’s coming into great years of his career and he will peak and we’ll get the benefit of that. He is a world class, fantastic footballer with a vision of a game we can use.”
Such was his early impact, Veron’s arrival led to club stalwart Nicky Butt admitting that his Man United career could be over after seeing his inspired display in a 4-1 win over Everton early in his Red Devils’ career.
Speaking on the United We Stand podcast in 2012, Butt said: “I was suspended and sat in the stands He was unbelievable, so good that I never thought that I’d play for United again.”
Veron’s first season at Man United couldn’t have gone better, scoring five and offering six assists in 40 games as a regular starter under Ferguson.
His second season, however, saw him fall out of the picture during the second half of the campaign after his performances failed to live up to the expectation of his record-breaking arrival.
His best performances undoubtedly came in the Champions League where he offered 14 goal contributions in 22 games for the Red Devils.
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Two years after joining, Man United cut their losses by offloading Veron to Chelsea for £15million where his struggles in England worsened, making just 14 appearances.
Assessing Veron’s time at Man United, Ferguson later said: “Juan Veron was capable of exceptional football and was talented. But, at times, he found the Premiership a bit difficult.
“He was a European player and that was where we got our best form from him.”
Should his move be completed, Zirkzee will face a similar challenge in adapting to life in the Premier League, something that Erik ten Hag will need to help him with.
Reflecting on what went wrong for him in England, Veron told FourFourTwo: “He (Ferguson) was so demanding with everybody. If you couldn’t keep up, it was clear you would have to look elsewhere.
“He was always forthright with me, but he had my back from day one, which was very much appreciated.
At some points, I wasn’t able to give him everything he expected from me consistently.
“He got it in a few matches but not in others, and if you want to be a great player, your game has to be stable. I couldn’t deliver it at Old Trafford.”