Donyell Malen thinks Gian Piero Gasperini is allowing him to play his best football at AS Roma
Donyell Malen of Roma
Donyell Malen of Roma(Image: Getty Images)
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Donyell Malen has admitted that Italian football suits his game better than it did in England, where he struggled to win a starting place at Aston Villa.
The Dutch striker hit the ground running at AS Roma in January and has scored eight goals in just 12 appearances across all competitions under Gian Piero Gasperini.
Malen joined Villa from Borussia Dortmund 12 months before his move to Italy but struggled to secure regular starts during his single year under Unai Emery.
He was open to a transfer to gain more playing time as a number nine, and Emery was willing to sanction the departure, especially as Malen himself wanted to take on a new challenge in his career.
Malen has been enjoying his time in Gasperini's system at Roma, as he told De Telegraaf: "We play very offensively, with a lot of pressure and many transitions. That suits me well.
"Maybe Italy suits me best. I haven't been here that long. I've had a good start and I want to maintain that. But I do think it suits me well in terms of space. And that the way we play suits me well too.
“I’m just training well. I have the momentum. When you score a lot of goals, you feel good, and you want to hold on to that.”
Roma will reportedly be obliged to buy Malen for €25 million (£21.7 million) if the club qualifies for either the Champions League or the Europa League, and if he features in at least half of their matches between now and the end of the season.
It is also claimed that Villa would retain a 10 percent sell-on clause in any permanent deal. The club have also received €2 million (£1.7 million) as a loan fee for Malen.
After Roma were knocked out of the Europa League at the round of 16 stage by Bologna, Malen will not get his reunion with Villa in April. However, he can still look forward to representing his country at the World Cup this coming summer.
Premier League legend Ruud van Nistelrooy is now working with Malen in the Netherlands national team, having joined Ronald Koeman’s backroom staff.
"I did have a meeting with him about what I can do better and what I need to do better,” Malen continued. “I am trying to improve on those, and we are doing that together now.
“We talked about first touch, setting the ball up well immediately, how to finish, and how your body is positioned when you want to shoot. Those things really make the difference."
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