Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has confirmed the club are on the lookout for a new striker but has stressed that they need to be ‘the right one’.
Following Cristiano Ronaldo’s acrimonious departure, the Red Devils appear to be lacking in attacking areas. Cody Gakpo appeared to be the top target, but the Red Devils appear set to miss out on the player, who is close to joining fierce rivals Liverpool instead.
With Ronaldo’s departure, Anthony Martial is the club’s only senior No. 9, with Marcus Rashford preferring to play on the left side. As a result, there have been strong calls for the club to strengthen its striking department in order to relieve pressure on the Frenchman and allow him to focus on his other responsibilities.
United have been linked with a number of players, including Joao Felix and Goncalo Ramos from Portugal. Gakpo, on the other hand, was the most heavily rumored. The fact that the Red Devils lost out on his signature to Liverpool does not appear to have deterred Ten Hag. The Dutchman has stated that he will seek to sign the “right” new frontman in January.
“We’re aware we’ve lost a striker, so we need to bring one in,” the Dutchman said ahead of United’s game against Nottingham Forest. “But it has to be the right one, someone who brings quality to the team, not just someone to add to the squad, and you know how high the criteria is here at Manchester United.”
United have struggled for goals in the Premier League this season, scoring just 20 times in 14 games. Chelsea are the only club in the top half to have scored fewer goals than the Red Devils, and Ten Hag admitted it was an issue he hoped to address as his players returned to full fitness..
“I look at it this way: it’s a good sign that we’re still fifth,” he said. “We’re aware that we need to score more goals and improve in a variety of areas.
We had so many chances against Burnley, and we need to be more decisive. But I was pleased with our performance, as we created seven or eight good chances, but it’s clear that we need to improve.
When you look at the first 14 games or so, we don’t have a problem in the front line. I’ve had to play players who were not fully fit on numerous occasions. That was most likely in the first few games, but as we get more players in the front line fit and available, we will score more goals..
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