Following the recent, and not all that unexpected news that Dimitar Berbatov will be leaving Manchester United at the end of the season, a couple of questions need to be answered. Should Sir Alex be looking at options to replace him and if so, what kind of player should he seek out?
Whilst I’ll be sad to see Berbatov pack his bags, I can understand the motivation behind his decision. It’s not like he has failed to perform when called upon. He’s always done his bit for the club and the fact that he was the joint top scorer last season, despite having his place in the squad slowly snatched away from him by Javier Hernandez says a lot.
The fact is, however, Sir Alex Ferguson clearly favours his young strikers and this means that the likes of Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez are always going to get a look in ahead of the 31-year-old Bulgarian.
All that’s left for United to do is bid him adieu and start planning for the future.
So do United need to start looking for a new signing, or do they have enough striking talent at the club already? Once Berba has left the pecking order should look something like this: Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck, Javier Hernandez and then Michael Owen. Whilst Owen may relish the additional game time, should United seek to promote some of their younger talent?
For a start I’d rule out the return of Federico Macheda. Whilst he’ll always be regarded as a bit of a hero by United fans for his injury time winner against Aston Villa back in 2009 he has failed to impress whilst on loan at QPR and doesn’t look to have much of a future in the Premier League.
So perhaps it’s time that they look elsewhere. If Sir Alex Ferguson is willing to buy there are plenty of potential candidates out there. United could attempt to snatch Lukas Podolski away from Arsenal (if he really is valued at just £10.9m that could be a real bargain). Or there’s Valencia’s goal-scorer supreme Roberto Soldado.
These are both good options, but I can’t help but feel that the perfect man for the job would be the player who helped knock Manchester United out of the Europa League: Fernando Llorente. That may seem pretty reactionary, considering his performances in Europe this season, but I think he is worthy of all the praise he has been getting.
He’s a great target man, is dominant in the air and more than capable along the ground. He has pace and power and will score goals (22 goals in 37 appearances this season). If he’s willing to leave Bilbao and the club are willing to sell I hope that Man United get involved with the bidding war for his signature. Just imagine him and Rooney together upfront with Welbeck and Hernandez to come off the bench when necessary.
Now that’s a strike-force to rival anybody else’s in world football.
Follow @ThePerfectPass on Twitter for details on all the latest updates and various football-related musings.
Introducing the neat little app that’ll pay you to view content tailored to your interests:
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.