Manchester United Signing Memphis Depay Is Like Cristiano Ronaldo, Says Dutch Expert

Memphis Depay, the winger and forward that Manchester United are believed to have spent around $40 million on, has been compared to Cristiano Ronaldo by a leading Dutch journalist.

According to the Mirror, Thijs Slegers, who writes for Voetbal International, explained that the 21-year-old, who is due to officially sign for Manchester United on July 1, is more like the Portuguese forward than Dutch winger and Bayern Munich star Arjen Robben during his appearance on MUTV.

“I don’t agree with the Robben comparison as Arjen is like Peter Pan when he’s dribbling, from left to right, with samba in his hips, whereas Memphis is more about power,” Slegers explained.

“Memphis is a little bit like Cristiano,” he then declared, which will be much to the delight of the Old Trafford faithful. “They have similar qualities, although there are of course areas where Memphis is inferior. However, his determination to be the best is where I see the real similarity with Cristiano.”

Ronaldo was a firm fan favorite while playing for Manchester United between 2003 and 2009. During this period his power, skill, and drive turned him into one of the best player’s in the world, while he also led United to three Premier League trophies and the 2007/2008 Champions League.

Ronaldo ultimately left Old Trafford to play for Real Madrid, but it cost the Spanish giants the at the time world record sum of $123 million to prize him away. This hasn’t stopped United fans from idolising the forward though, and his name is still sung on the terraces at Old Trafford to this day.

Most fans will be ecstatic to hear that Memphis Depay possesses the same raw attributes that Ronaldo did at that age. Slegers continued in his description of Depay, “The way Memphis was brought up has given him a fearless style to his playing. He has respect for his opponents but he does not fear them.”

Depay, who was a regular in PSV’s first team from the age of 19, will now have to “become more consistent” in succeed in the Premier League, while he will probably need time to adjust to the more physical rigours of the English division.

[Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images]