Why Manchester United Must Keep Faith in Radamel Falcao

Radamel Falcao might just be Manchester United’s best player.

Of course, the evidence is as yet far from definitive. United's official Twitter account confirmed that Falcao remains injured (although the tweet below says it is a "new injury" the club later clarified that it was a continued problem with his calf rather than a brand new injury).

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Van Gaal tells #MUTV that @Falcao "has a new injury" and is at least two weeks away from a first-team return. #mufc

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) November 20, 2014

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In spite of his recent injuries, it remains possible that the last-minute loan signing of El Tigre could prove to be Louis van Gaal’s best decision in his time in charge of United so far.

Falcao’s status as a true great of the game was in no doubt in 2012/13 when, in Atletico Madrid stripes, he scored 28 league goals in 34 games. Sid Lowe, writing in the Guardian in October 2012 cited cover stories from Spanish newspapers Marca and AS which said "Falcao has no barriers" and "Falcao has no limits," respectively. 

In December 2012, Lowe, again writing in the Guardian, quoted then-Deportivo La Coruna manager Jose Luis Oltra as saying:

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I think Falcao might just be the best striker in the world.

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Lowe went on to write:  

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Left foot, right foot, inside the area and outside, powerful and precise; he has an astonishing array of finishing skills. The efficiency is startling. Against Deportivo he scored five times. How many shots had he taken? Five. It was no one-off, either: Falcao has scored 16 in the league this season to Messi's 23 and Ronaldo's 13. He has taken 52 shots, less than half as many as Ronaldo, on 108, and significantly fewer than Messi on 79.

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Lowe’s article was written not quite two years ago and is notable in that it hints that Real Madrid were the most likely suitors for Falcao’s services. The Colombian’s surprise move to Monaco was thought by some, including Michael Bertin of Grantland and Tim Poole of the Daily Mail, to have been influenced by his third-party owners, Doyen Sports.

A move to a club which was clearly not a European powerhouse did not lessen Falcao's quality as a player, but the fear that the knee injury he sustained there may have had lasting damage remains. 

However, according to Jason Burt’s report in the Telegraph of 16 November, Falcao’s current injury is unconnected to his previous knee problem. Burt wrote:  

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The 28-year-old striker was omitted from the Colombia squad for their friendly matches against the United States at Craven Cottage last Friday and Slovenia in Ljubljana this Tuesday and wants to use the time to get himself fit enough to feature regularly for United. The club are confident he can do so.

Crucially there is no chronic problem with Falcao’s left knee—despite claims to the contrary—and no reason why he should not return to his best.

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If he does return to his best, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that would make him United’s best striker, if not best player outright.

His goalscoring record over the five seasons before 2014/15 is significantly better than either Wayne Rooney or Robin van Persie. In those five seasons, across European, league and domestic cup competitions, Van Persie scored 114 goals, Rooney 118 and Falcao 143.

Denis Doyle/Getty Images

Last season Falcao’s injury meant he only scored 11 goals, to Rooney’s 19 and Van Persie’s 16. Prior to that, within that five-season spell, only in 2009/10, when Rooney scored 33 to the Colombian’s 29, did either player score more than El Tigre in a single campaign. That was Falcao’s first season in Europe.

His first season in England has gotten off to a slow start, hampered by his recent injury. However, assuming the reports that his knee problem is not chronic are correct, there is every chance he could start firing again. 

A fit and firing Falcao would add a dimension to United's attack that has been sorely lacking in his absence. Van Persie has cut a static presence as a lone striker. This has limited the space available to United's other attacking players and made United less dangerous on the counter-attack. Falcao's presence would change that dramatically, as many of his goals for Atleti demonstrate. 

Michael Regan/Getty Images

Falcao is an exceptional player. His devastating performance against Chelsea in the Super Cup final in 2012 was an example of his best work, as was the 2012 Europa League final. And they were not an anomaly, as this video shows. 

The staggering level of quality which Falcao displayed in Spain is such that United should most certainly keep the faith. Something which the man himself clearly believes, too. 

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Success is not only what looks like, Bible says Great things will happen after blindness times, Check Joseph history at Genesis 37

— Radamel Falcao (@FALCAO) November 20, 2014

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