Manchester United Need Radamel Falcao at Full Fitness

It is just under a month since Radamel Falcao last pulled on the shirt of Manchester United at The Hawthorns, with the Colombian forward having missed out on three Premier League matches since.

Supporters are still bemused as to what exactly is wrong with Falcao, with boss Louis van Gaal citing a calf injury as reported by Reuters, while Jamie Jackson of the Guardian has suggested the Colombian is having problems with the knee he injured quite severely last season.

In reality both could be true, however, this does not appease the worries of Manchester United supporters for whom Falcao has become something of a cult hero, not least because of the captivating nature of his terrace chant.

This aside, Falcao has actually been a major influence on the positives of United's play in the early part of the campaign, and there has been a definite drop in quality going forward in the three matches the Colombian has missed.

Bleacher Report's own Nick Miller recently penned a piece explaining just why the recent spate of fitness worries suffered by Falcao is a growing concern for United, with the club having pinned much of their attacking hopes on him following the decisions to loan out and sell Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck to Real Madrid and Arsenal, respectively.

In the fixtures against Chelsea, Manchester City and most recently Crystal Palace, United have lacked a real cutting edge in front of goal. The overall balance of the three performances, with perhaps the 1-0 victory over Palace being the exception, has actually been impressive, with the defensive frailties having not been so exposed—as had been the case in previous matches.

As previously touched upon, United have been less effective going forward. If we look back to just before Falcao's current fitness worries began, the Colombian was playing a huge part in victories for United—and not just victories but high-class performances in the forward areas.

Some of the attacking play illustrated by Manchester United in the 5-3 defeat to Leicester City, and the two consecutive home victories over West Ham United and Everton, was arguably the finest seen at Old Trafford since Sir Alex Ferguson's great team of 2007-08.

Of course, it must be said that Leicester's defence was not of the highest quality, and United then faced an Everton team without Ross Barkley and James McCarthy, but the work in the final third was impressive all the same.

Falcao was central to this. The Colombian's robust style of play was a welcome addition to a United forward line that had in previous seasons been rather lightweight. Falcao was so difficult to dispossess, particularly when in and around the box, and this enabled him to bring others into play to create chances, or even get a shot on goal away himself.

United's attacks, particularly in the early stages against Leicester, were a constant barrage of quality football and, in truth, have yet to be repeated without Falcao.

The 4-4-2 diamond formation used in those matches was United's best possible outlet for high-quality attacking football. However, it left a lot of pressure on members of United's fragile defensive line.

Van Gaal was correct to use two different variations of the 4-5-1 system in matches against Chelsea and Manchester City, in order to avoid such pressure being placed on United's defence against the two best teams in the country.

Van Gaal confirmed that the system was changed to improve the balance of the squad, and Falcao's injury in the meantime had no bearing on that change, as reported by David McDonnell of the Mirror.

"

I have to decide which striker [to use].

It's not his fault with the other system I could play with two strikers, but then the balance wasn't good.

We had difficulties in the last half-an-hour of games. That's why I have remodelled the structure.

Since then we have less goals in our favour but also less goal conceded.

"

The match against Crystal Palace appeared a perfect opportunity to return to the 4-4-2 diamond, but yet again defensive injuries have struck as well as the injury to Falcao, which has forced Van Gaal to stick with his more midfield-focused system to the detriment of his team's attacking flow.

The performance against Palace was worrying because it was one all too reminiscent of the David Moyes era. Of course, in terms of the result, United took away three points, something which didn't happen in similar situations last term. However, the attacking play was stuttering and lacked any real flow.

It was no surprise that the breakthrough goal came from an ambitious shot from just outside of the penalty area.

Van Gaal is still looking for balance, that is clear, and at this moment the best possible balance available to him is a team selection that uses only one striker. The best possible formation United could use to get the most out of their numerous attacking options has been the 4-4-2 diamond, and you have to think with the addition of a true defensive leader, that system would be much more effective in all matches.

Until that defensive leader arrives, though, Van Gaal has to do what is best for the team in all aspects. Whether this includes Falcao replacing Van Persie in that role on a regular basis, we will have to wait and see when he is back to full fitness.

On the evidence of performances so far, the Colombian is surely one of Van Gaal's best attacking options and must be utilised as such when possible.

Falcao has since taken to Twitter to rather cryptically suggest stories of troubles with his knee are false, which are encouraging signs for supporters hoping to see El Tigre back in action sooner rather than later.

The January transfer window may provide an opportunity for Van Gaal to again reshuffle the pack, so to speak, and once that occurs we may well see Falcao back in the position which made United such a dangerous attacking unit earlier this year.

Until then, the main focus has to be on improving and then proving the Colombian's fitness, as he will be crucial for United's development as a football team in the next few years.