Weghorst: I’ve tears for Reds ... but not Erik
WOUT WEGHORST cried tears of joy the day he joined Manchester United – but the Dutchman now blames Erik ten Hag for his failure to make the grade at Old Trafford.
Weghorst, 31, realised his boyhood dream when United paid £3million last January to land him on loan, cutting short his temporary move to Turkish club Besiktas from Burnley.
He was so emotional when he heard about United coming in for him that he wept.
But Weghorst – still a Burnley player – is now on loan at German club Hoffenheim.
His five-month spell in Manchester brought an EFL Cup medal and an appearance in the FA Cup Final – but just two goals in 31 appearances.
And the 6ft 6in striker blames United boss Ten Hag’s tactics. Weghorst said: “Those months were successful, we hardly lost. I was a focal point and hardworking link between midfield and attack.
“Only my goals were lagging behind. That gnawed at me and was the reason why I lost my starting place.
“The Premier League is by far the toughest, with the best defenders – but we were so rarely the dominant side creating chances. And the way we played was also different from what I was used to.
“In Germany and Turkey, the teams always played for me – I was the end of the line, while at United I mainly had to ensure that others could excel.
“I think I managed that very well. But whichever way you look at it, I would have liked to score much more often.”
Weghorst paid a price for joining United in more ways than one.
After helping Holland reach the World Cup quarter-finals in Qatar, Old Trafford came calling – and Weghorst turned down a stay-put fortune at Besiktas to wear the famous red shirt.
He revealed: “Things went very well at Besiktas and I was enjoying myself immensely. One evening my agent called me. First he told me a story about Brentford – and then he suddenly shouted, ‘Wout, United want you!’.
“I dropped the phone and burst into tears.
“My relationship with Besiktas’s sporting director was very good and I explained it was my boyhood dream. He said he understood, but then Besiktas kept coming up with more financial offers. I won’t mention any amounts, but, believe me, I lost a lot of money to make the transfer possible.”
As the deal was being sealed, Weghorst watched United beat rivals City 2-1 in the Manchester derby and recalled: “I entered that magical stadium for the first time and when I sat down in my seat, looked around and took in the chanting of the fans, it hit me hard.
“That was the moment I realised, ‘This is my club now’. I had dreamt it as a young boy. To see it happen made me shiver.”
But Weghorst’s dreamcome-true is tinged with regret. He added: “There was zero adjustment time. The pressure was bizarre and the physical strain greater than I had ever experienced.
“Only in the last few months did I become myself and dared to throw off the shyness.
“But I will never forget my goal at Old Trafford against Real Betis.
“The fans were super crazy about me – they saw that I was doing everything for it. “And I’m quite proud that I got
this far.”
‘I lost a lot of money to make the move to United possible’