DONNY VAN DE BEEK has warned his Manchester United team-mates over the threat of David Silva and Real Sociedad tonight.
The Red Devils kick off their Europa League campaign against the LaLiga club at Old Trafford.
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Erik ten Hag’s side go into the clash with their confidence sky high after a run of four consecutive victories in the Premier League.
Marcus Rashford’s brace fired them to a 3-1 win over Arsenal on Sunday and they will be hoping to kickstart to European glory against the Spaniards.
Ten Hag is expected to make a number of changes to his side for the visit of Sociedad.
That could see Dutch midfielder Van de Beek line up alongside the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Maguire.
But the former Ajax man knows all too well that he and his colleagues must be on the top of their game to stop their opponents – and particularly Man City legend Silva – even if they have just sold star striker Alexander Isak to Newcastle.
Spanish star Silva, 36, moved to the Etihad from Valencia in 2010 and made 436 appearances and helped City win 14 trophies before departing to Sociedad in 2021.
And despite his age, Van de Beek knows that the playmaker will still provide a huge threat.
He said: “There are really good teams in La Liga. I saw Real Sociedad play a few times and they are technical and really good.
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“They are all technically very good, like all Spanish teams. It’s a tough opponent, and we have to play good to get the result.
“But we need to focus on ourselves to be in top shape and to be in good form. I saw their game against Barcelona recently – at the end they conceded a few goals – but, before that, they played good football.”
Van de Beek added: “It will be a tough game and we have to give everything. David Silva, for example, is a really good player.
“They lost [Alexander] Isak, who was a good striker. I played against him in the Netherlands before, when he played there [for Willem II]. But they have a few more other good players.”