Memphis Depay Axed from Netherlands Squad, Criticised by Danny Blind

Netherlands manager Danny Blind has left Manchester United starlet Memphis Depay out of his latest squad, insisting the forward needs to become more of a team player.

The 21-year-old hasn’t started a Premier League game for the Red Devils since early October and failed to impress recently in United’s League Cup loss to Middlesbrough. It’s a poor run that has not gone unnoticed by the Oranje boss, as Blind omitted Depay from the national squad ahead of upcoming friendlies against Wales and Germany.

Here is a look at the first squad the Netherlands named since the curtain came down on their fruitless European Championships campaign, per the team's Twitter account:

Blind had some harsh words for Depay when the squad was announced too, per Football365:

"

I think Depay is a player for the future. But there are other issues to look at. Perhaps Louis van Gaal has also said something.

In football you must function in a team. He doesn’t always do that. I have also told him when I called him to say he’s not in there. That’s something he has to learn.

"

Peter Dejong/Associated Press

As Football365 noted, Blind was also unhappy with Depay’s decision not to address the press after their 3-2 loss to Czech Republic last month, insisting the United man “should have talked about that with us.”

After he made a big-money summer move to United and showed glimpses of enthralling potential in his first few appearances for the club, things have quickly turned sour for Depay. His latest performances in the iconic red jersey have been erratic, and he doesn’t appear to have reacted well to being benched recently, with Louis van Gaal giving more playing time to Jesse Lingard.

However, Dutch football expert Elko Born played down the significance of the former PSV Eindhoven man missing out on this squad:

It’s certainly a message from Blind and the kind of statement that many will feel was overdue as Dutch football looks to galvanise itself again. For too long, this Netherlands team have resembled a set of fractious components rather than a cohesive unit, and it seems as though the former Ajax man is going to place a strong emphasis on togetherness moving forward.

Peter Dejong/Associated Press

Robin van Persie’s omission from the group also points toward a team that's looking to the future, something Depay will be keen to play a major part in. Hopefully this decision will trigger a positive response from the youngster and we’ll begin to see him performing well for Manchester United again in the weeks to come.