Speaking ahead of Real Madrid’s clash against Granada last weekend, Galacticos’ boss Carlo Ancelotti revealed his sympathies for striker Javier Hernandez.
Bought in on loan with a view to a permanent transfer last summer, the Mexican has struggled to have any sort of impact in the Spanish capital.
With only 14 appearances, many from the bench, ‘Little Pea’s’ move to Madrid has been a failure. But would his parent club profit from having the predatory striker back in their mitts?
Hernandez’s impact at Old Trafford was startling. Bought mainly as back up by Sir Alex Ferguson in 2010, his performances on the pitch made him a central part of his plans. Thirteen goals in his debut season went along way to helping his new team lift the Premier League trophy.
His next two seasons in England represented similar yields for the Mexican. Scoring 10 goals in both of the next two campaigns, he built a reputation as one of the most feared goal scorers in English football.
However, Ferguson’s departure has essentially seemed to end his United career and both David Moyes and Van Gaal have been reluctant to use the forward, with Van Gaal electing to send him out on loan.
[ffc-gal cat=”manchester-united” no=”5″]
The strike force at the start of this season meant the Dutch manager seemed to be taking no risk in letting Hernandez go. Both Van Persie and Rooney were comfortably ahead of him in the pecking order, and the signing of Radamel Falcao meant game time for the Mexican would be limited at best.
But as we have seen this season, only Rooney has had any sort of consistent impact on this new Man United side. Van Persie has been dogged by injuries and, when he has been fit, he has looked a shadow of the player he once was. Radamel Falcao has also struggled to settle into life in Manchester, only three goals have been netted by the Colombian since his arrival.
As United now enter a pivotal run of fixtures in their quest for top four football, they are almost solely reliant on their captain Rooney for striking options. Few could argue that Hernandez wouldn’t add to this current United side.
Javier Hernandez still seems as if he would be the perfect foil for Rooney. Although he has been at United for five years now, he has never had a consistent run in the side. Even through this he has managed a good return and his record should be respected.
If he is still committed to Manchester United, it seems silly for them to not seriously look at trying to convince him to return to Manchester. It seems inevitable his Spanish journey is coming to an end and his list of admirers is sure to be long.
Van Gaal will need to go out and purchase quality players to help propel his side into serious title contention, come next year. He would have to spend some serious money to find a striker as effective and instinctive as Hernandez.
[ad_pod id=’ffc-video’ align=’center’]
[ad_pod id=’ricco’ align=’center’]
