Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits he was won over by new signing Donny van de Beek many years ago.

The Dutch midfielder arrives from Ajax with a big reputation for his creativity and goal scoring.

United will be hoping he can add to the team's depth in the attacking midfield positions.

Solskjaer reveals he has been following van de Beek since December 2015, when Ajax played Solskjaer's Molde.

"I followed Donny," said Solskjaer of the new signing.

"He scored his first goal against Molde in the Europa League in 2015. We drew 1-1 at the Amsterdam Arena and he scored a fantastic header.

"He actually head-butted my centre-back so he was very brave as well.

"It was at the start of the game so I liked his infectious attitude. He has a smile on his face and when you see players with that drive and desire that is one way you need to use your eye.

"But I have spoken to Edwin van der Sar and other players that know him. You just use the people you know and trust to scout the character.

"He is a versatile, intelligent player and he's got loads of energy and enthusiasm. He is developing all the time.

"He scores goals and we need to add goals from midfield. Our forwards scored quite a few goals last season, and Bruno (Fernandes) came in and scored goals, but we need goals throughout the squad and the team because we didn't score enough to be challenging at the top.

"He will add his creativity. He has a good reading and understanding of the game, he can see space and arrives at the right time. His timing is fantastic."