Falcao is still top of the flops as Terry makes him suffer
THERE are moments when Radamel Falcao sets off on those delayed runs in the red shirt of Manchester United and it all comes flooding back. This could have been just the start.
He made his name with Porto, and added to his allure with darting runs across opposition defences for Atletico Madrid and Monaco during five glorious years in European football.
Chelsea away is a tough one to come into, and Falcao was only thrown in against the Barclays Premier League leaders because manager Louis van Gaal was short of bodies. He is yet to score against any top-level Premier League team, with his meagre return coming in games against Everton, Aston Villa, Stoke City and Leicester City.
It is sad to say but the knee injury he suffered in the buildup to last summer’s World Cup has cost him that critical yard of pace. In his heart, he must know that.
The United forward was schooled here, denied space and room to breathe by the constant, intimidating presence of Chelsea captain John Terry.
Falcao lost almost every key battle at Stamford Bridge. When a game gets niggly, as it did in the lead-up to Chelsea’s winning goal from Eden Hazard on 38 minutes, Terry excels.
For a man of his experience, Falcao should have been stronger, shielding the ball when he took a buffeting from Terry on the halfway line. Seconds later, Chelsea had taken the lead.
There was another skirmish before the break, a collision that ended with Terry jabbing a finger in Falcao’s face after they had landed together in a crumpled heap.
Terry was on top of him, taking the responsibility for marking the United forward away from his defensive partner Gary Cahill.
Falcao loked like a man short of fitness and the sharpness expected of a player in a game of this magnitude. This was a start, but he has been restricted to substitute appearances of late.
He had just 19 touches in the first half, failing to take any of them in Chelsea’s penalty area during a period when Van Gaal’s team were operating at almost full throttle.
In Alex Ferguson’s era, the club was blessed with great strikers, from Andy Cole to Ruud van Nistelrooy to Wayne Rooney. All pulled on the United shirt in their prime.
Ferguson was here at the Bridge, watching this new team take shape under their Dutch coach, and he will know that they are crying out for a fully-fit forward.
Falcao is indifferent, short of confidence (and goals) after a frustrating eight months since his move on loan from Monaco for the season.
He is crying out for help, desperate to roll back the years after spending so much of the season out of the picture.
Sadly, for a man of his stature, he is trading on memories now.