Louis van Gaal Must Be an 'Assh--e' to Memphis Depay, Says Pierre van Hooijdonk

Former Netherlands international Pierre van Hooijdonk has called for Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal to be an "assh--e" to Memphis Depay in order to get his compatriot's form to improve.

According to the Daily Star's Chisanga Malata, Van Hooijdonk wrote in a column for Voetbal International:

"

What to do with a guy like Memphis? The national team coach knows he needs him in the future. It's obvious that he has exceptional qualities.

But he needs a type that says: Friend, act normal. Quit screwing around and start playing football. Someone needs to be an assh--e to him.

It's possible that he will turn against you if you say something about his qualities or his behaviour. Worst case: he doesn't run for you at all.

"

Van Hooijdonk isn't the only former Holland star to criticise the forward, with Youri Mulder recently taking issue with his attitude, per Dutch outlet NOS (h/t the Daily Star's Rhys Turrell).

There were high hopes for Depay upon his arrival from PSV Eindhoven in the summer following his exceptional form for the Dutch outfit, demonstrated by WhoScored.com (h/t EPL Stat Man):

However, the Netherlands man has struggled to make an impact in the Premier League with the Red Devils.

According to Opta, via Goal's Kris Voakes, Depay's 44 per cent shooting accuracy is the worst in the squad, his 81.32 per cent passing accuracy is the second-worst of any outfield player and he has created just four chances.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Most tellingly of all, he has just one goal and one assist to his name in the league.

Football writer Liam Canning is among those to criticise the 21-year-old and was content to see him left out of the starting lineup in United's 3-0 win over Everton:

However, it's not all doom and gloom for the youngster.

In all competitions, Depay's goal and assist tallies sit on four apiece, which is somewhat more encouraging.

Further, as Squawka notes, while Depay may have only completed 11 take-ons—fewer than Arsenal holding midfielder Francis Coquelin and Aston Villa defender Micah Richards, according to Opta (h/t Voakes)—that's still more than any other United player.

Dutch football writer Elko Born still believes he has a promising future ahead of him:

As Born indicates, it's important to remember Depay is still young.

The pressures of coming to a club like United and a £25 million price tag—according to Malata—can make it difficult for players to adapt quickly to their new surroundings, particularly when exchanging the Netherlands and the Eredivisie for England and the Premier League.

The youngster needs to put more work into making incisive contributions for the Red Devils, and some stern words from Van Gaal could give him the attitude change he needs, but he needs to be given longer than a few months to justify his arrival.