Are Manchester United right to seek out this FC Porto striker swap?

For one reason or another, Manchester United forward Javier Hernandez has found himself the subject of a good deal of speculation in regards to his future. With ex-Arsenal star Robin Van Persie brought in this summer to add additional fire-power to Sir Alex Ferguson’s attack, the young Mexican has been cast somewhat asunder.

He’s clearly a talented player. He takes up intelligent positions and still has the best movement of any forward in the Premier League. But he’s been given less playing time and has thus failed to find any kind of goal-scoring consistency. He won’t be happy with his current situation and Sir Alex may well consider it the right time to try and shift him on to another club.

And now, according to Italian source CalcioMercato, Sir Alex is looking to arrange a swap deal with FC Porto. Javier Hernandez will go in one direction and Porto star James Rodriguez will come back the other way.

At just 21-years-old, Rodriguez has earned one hell of a reputation. He’s won the nickname ‘el neuvo pibe’, or ‘the new kid’, a sly reference to Carlos Valderrama, who was known as ‘the kid’. If he ends up being anything like as good as the floppy haired Colombian, football fans are in for a treat. He’s also been called a ‘South American Cristiano Ronaldo’, but hasn’t every South American forward been labeled that at one stage?

Regardless of the truth or falsity of these different labels, one thing’s for sure: the kid’s talented. He’s known for his fast, direct running, his confidence on the ball, his tricky feet and his ability to chip in with some goals. Last season he found the back of the net 13 times in 34 games. Not a bad return for such a young player.

Whilst Hernandez and Rodriguez aren’t exactly worlds apart in terms of what they could offer Manchester United at this very moment, you get the feeling that Rodriguez could develop into a very special player indeed. If FC Porto are willing to countenance a swap deal of this nature, Sir Alex should bite their hand off. Of course, it’ll be sad to see Hernandez move on, but this would, almost certainly, be in the best interest of the club.

What’s your take? Would you swap Hernandez for Rodriguez?

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