MANCHESTER UNITED WERE immersed in transfer activity during the summer, signing six new players – the bulk of them for big money. One high-profile move – the arrival of Radamel Falcao on a loan deal from Monaco – ensured the subsequent departure of Danny Welbeck to Arsenal, a deal that irritated and annoyed many United supporters. And according to Damien Comolli, former Director of Football at Liverpool and Tottenham, the club have taken a substantial risk in signing the Colombian attacker.
“I think he started only one competitive game from the moment he was injured until the day he signed for Manchester United – over six or seven months. So any decision you would make in that situation would be a risk. Now, they had a specialist looking at him and that’s probably why they did a loan deal. Time will tell but it’s quite a big risk, with the wages he’s on.”
Rui Vieira / AP/Press Association Images
Rui Vieira / AP/Press Association Images / AP/Press Association Images
Falcao has accumulated 251 minutes on the pitch since arriving at Old Trafford – that’s an average of 50.2 minutes per game. He’s still to play a full match and from the three games he’s started, he’s lasted an average of 70 minutes before being replaced. The last time he completed 90 minutes was in a Ligue Un game against Montpellier in early January.
Comolli feels that suffering a serious injury trauma at his age meant a drop-off in his performances was always likely.
Data shows that after 26 it’s very difficult for players to come back from an ACL injury – all the surgeons will tell you the same thing. From an ownership perspective and a director’s perspective, if I was looking at the United team now I’d be thinking ‘My three biggest earners – one was born in 1983 (Van Persie) so he’s going to be 32, one was born in 1985 (Rooney) and just turned 29 and one is 29 next February, on huge wages and coming back from a bad cruciate injury’.”
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So, would Comolli have signed Falcao?
“Not with Rooney, Van Persie and Welbeck in the squad.”
Damien Comolli says there's 'absolutely no chance' he would've sold Danny Welbeck. Martin Rickett / PA Wire/Press Association Images
Martin Rickett / PA Wire/Press Association Images / PA Wire/Press Association Images
He wouldn’t have got rid of Welbeck?
“Absolutely no chance.”
But what does Welbeck offer that’s so special, considering Louis van Gaal seemed to make his mind up about him quite quickly?
“Pace, attitude, youth – which Van Persie, Falcao and Rooney haven’t got anymore. He has a Manchester United culture, philosophy and identity coming from the academy. I think Louis Van Gaal is right when he says he doesn’t score enough goals but I had several conversations with Arsene Wenger at the time and Arsene looked at what Thierry Henry did when he was Welbeck’s age. He never scored goals and, like Welbeck, he was playing on the wing or as a second striker. Arsene’s thinking was to say ‘Right, I’m going to stick with him up front and see where we get to.’ And he’s scored goals already, he’s doing well for Arsenal and he’s only been playing up front on a regular basis for three months. That was probably a tough call from United, whether they’ll regret it or not.”
Comolli feels United's three biggest earners are three attackers that are only getting older. Mike Egerton / EMPICS Sport
Mike Egerton / EMPICS Sport / EMPICS Sport
For Comolli, the age-profiles of United’s attackers are a worry but he does acknowledge that the club may be happy to play a short-term game in order to battle through a difficult transition and get back on an even keel. Still, numbers-wise, it would appear that United’s chances of relative European success are quite a way off.
“I’ve been looking at some data recently: over the last ten years, the average age of the strike-force of the Champions League winners is 27.4. The average age for the losing finalist is 26.4. If United don’t play in the Champions League this season and next, those three strikers that they’re stuck with for the next two or three years are getting older and the window of opportunity to win that Champions League or get close to it – statistically – is declining massively with age.”
“If I was a Manchester United director, I’d be very concerned.”
Damien Comolli: 'If I was a Manchester United director, I'd be very concerned'
MANCHESTER UNITED WERE immersed in transfer activity during the summer, signing six new players – the bulk of them for big money. One high-profile move – the arrival of Radamel Falcao on a loan deal from Monaco – ensured the subsequent departure of Danny Welbeck to Arsenal, a deal that irritated and annoyed many United supporters. And according to Damien Comolli, former Director of Football at Liverpool and Tottenham, the club have taken a substantial risk in signing the Colombian attacker.
“I think he started only one competitive game from the moment he was injured until the day he signed for Manchester United – over six or seven months. So any decision you would make in that situation would be a risk. Now, they had a specialist looking at him and that’s probably why they did a loan deal. Time will tell but it’s quite a big risk, with the wages he’s on.”
Falcao has accumulated 251 minutes on the pitch since arriving at Old Trafford – that’s an average of 50.2 minutes per game. He’s still to play a full match and from the three games he’s started, he’s lasted an average of 70 minutes before being replaced. The last time he completed 90 minutes was in a Ligue Un game against Montpellier in early January.
Comolli feels that suffering a serious injury trauma at his age meant a drop-off in his performances was always likely.
So, would Comolli have signed Falcao?
“Not with Rooney, Van Persie and Welbeck in the squad.”
He wouldn’t have got rid of Welbeck?
“Absolutely no chance.”
But what does Welbeck offer that’s so special, considering Louis van Gaal seemed to make his mind up about him quite quickly?
“Pace, attitude, youth – which Van Persie, Falcao and Rooney haven’t got anymore. He has a Manchester United culture, philosophy and identity coming from the academy. I think Louis Van Gaal is right when he says he doesn’t score enough goals but I had several conversations with Arsene Wenger at the time and Arsene looked at what Thierry Henry did when he was Welbeck’s age. He never scored goals and, like Welbeck, he was playing on the wing or as a second striker. Arsene’s thinking was to say ‘Right, I’m going to stick with him up front and see where we get to.’ And he’s scored goals already, he’s doing well for Arsenal and he’s only been playing up front on a regular basis for three months. That was probably a tough call from United, whether they’ll regret it or not.”
For Comolli, the age-profiles of United’s attackers are a worry but he does acknowledge that the club may be happy to play a short-term game in order to battle through a difficult transition and get back on an even keel. Still, numbers-wise, it would appear that United’s chances of relative European success are quite a way off.
“I’ve been looking at some data recently: over the last ten years, the average age of the strike-force of the Champions League winners is 27.4. The average age for the losing finalist is 26.4. If United don’t play in the Champions League this season and next, those three strikers that they’re stuck with for the next two or three years are getting older and the window of opportunity to win that Champions League or get close to it – statistically – is declining massively with age.”
“If I was a Manchester United director, I’d be very concerned.”
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