Manchester United coach Louis van Gaal has identified the answer to his club’s striking problems this season…although the answer may leave some Red Devils fans feeling a little flat.
Speaking ahead of United’s Champions League playoff second leg against Club Brugge on Wednesday evening, van Gaal backed Marouane Fellaini to feature more regularly for the 20-time English champions as a striker this season.
“He can play in a nine position and a 10,” van Gaal began, as per Sky Sports.
“He can also play at six and eight, but this year he shall play more at nine and 10 because there we have other players.”
Despite investing heavily in their squad during the summer, bringing in the likes of Memphis Depay, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Matteo Darmian and Morgan Schneiderlin, United have not brought in a new centre-forward.
Considering the summer departures of Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao, this risks leaving the Red Devils a little light in attack, even if they did see Javier Hernandez return from his loan deal at Real Madrid.
Wayne Rooney has featured in attack so far this season, but the England international has not looked particularly effective. United drew a blank against Newcastle United at the weekend, only overcame Tottenham Hotspur thanks to a Kyle Walker own goal and only managed a 1-0 triumph against Aston Villa.
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As such, United have been linked with several high-profile forwards—including Thomas Muller [Sky Germany via the Metro] and Neymar [The Sun via the Telegraph]—but it appears as though van Gaal is content with Fellaini for this season.
However, will the former Everton midfielder be able to score the goals required for United to make the title challenge their fans crave?