OLE WON’T DO BETTER BUSINESS THAN KEEPING CAVANI AT UNITED
IT is a quirk of Edinson Cavani’s Manchester United career that he has made as many substitute appearances in the Premier League as he has starts. Eleven apiece. He signed on October 5 of last year and did not make a Premier League starting line-up until December 5.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said it was because Cavani needed to work on his match fitness, but every time he came on, he looked pretty sharp to me.
Anthony Martial was fit at that stage of the season and Solskjaer, to be fair, had quite a few attacking options.
But it seems unthinkable to have Cavani as anything other than an automatic choice now.
If Solskjaer had any doubts about the Uruguayan when he arrived on a free transfer, they have surely long gone. » SOMETIMES, we can overthink things. Bad ownership? Yes. A deeply flawed recruitment policy? Yes. But the main issue at Arsenal right now might be that Mikel Arteta is not cut out for management. He would not be the first ex-player to be better suited to being a right-hand man.
That is why the United manager now has to make keeping the 34-year-old at Old Trafford his No.1 priority.
Talk of him moving to Boca Juniors persists.
But the Argentine club look likely to recruit veteran Peruvian striker Paolo Guerrero, who, at 37, makes Cavani look like a spring chicken.
Cavani (right) himself is often referred to as a veteran, but he is a player who shows all the signs of being able to stay at the very top for a few years to come.
Bear in mind, he is two years younger than Cristiano Ronaldo.
He is such an intelligent striker that he rarely wastes a run and that is surely one of the secrets to longevity.
Not only should United and Solskjaer be trying to persuade him to take up the option of a one-year extension, they should be putting a two-year deal on the table.
If Harry Kane and/or Erling Haaland decide they
want to leave their
clubs, United should be in the bidding mix – if only to try and stop Manchester City from becoming even
more formidable. But keeping Cavani has to be their No.1 target.
Alongside Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba, it means United would boast a trio of genuinely world-class players.
And talents such as Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood cannot fail to learn and thrive from Cavani’s influence and experience.
United should spend, but maybe a high-class holding midfielder is higher up the wanted list than a striker – if Cavani stays.
Only City have scored more
Premier League goals than United this season.
If Cavani is unhappy in his life in Manchester, then that is the end of the story.
He is at the stage of his career where he does not need to make any unnecessary sacrifices.
But he certainly looks content on the pitch. He is in the top bracket when it comes to running statistics and his sense of camaraderie was evident when he stood up for Greenwood in a spat in Rome on Thursday night.
He is a fantastic finisher, but Cavani is also very much the ultimate team player.
Again, if Solskjaer had any reservations about Cavani when he arrived, then they have long gone.
And keeping him at Old Trafford will be the best bit of transfer business Manchester United can do this summer.