Does Radamel Falcao's Shocking Man Utd Season Prove He's Finished at Top Level?

On Monday, Louis van Gaal ignored the £265,000-per-week Colombian striker sitting on his bench for the second successive match as his Manchester United side searched for a goal against Arsenal in the FA Cup quarter-final. It's an apt summation of Radamel Falcao's nightmare season in 2014-15.

At Newcastle United, during their 1-0 midweek win, Adnan Januzaj, Juan Mata and Michael Carrick were sent on before Ashley Young dug out an 89th-minute winner. Against Arsenal this week, Falcao again sat still as Januzaj was sent on to try and salvage something—only to be booked for a blatant dive in the box.

Falcao told the Daily Mail in 2014 that he wants to stay at Old Trafford despite not being played regularly, but it'd be surprising if that sentiment remains true, given the decrease in playing time he's received.

But why is a purported world-class striker who has taken in spells at Atletico Madrid, FC Porto and nouveau-riche Monaco and cost more than €40 million on two separate occasions seen as damaged goods by his manager? Is he finished at the top level?

We are not long removed from dogged rumours linking Falcao to Real Madrid. The 29-year-old is said to have wanted to move to the capital in the past, but moving from Atleti to Real is a complicated, rarely feasible matter. 

Monaco was the bridge between the two sides. Falcao seemed likely to swap Atleti for Real via the French province so Diego Simeone could avoid the ignominy of selling his best player (at the time) to the club's fiercest rival.

But a torn ACL in his first season at Monaco wrecked everything. After suffering the injury in January 2014, he missed the FIFA World Cup as a result, despite training night and day. He hasn't looked the same since. His knees are precarious, and the established, lingering concerns over a player carrying a reconstructed knee are prevalent for legitimate reason.

This writer saw his pre-season performance at the Emirates Cup in the flesh, and it's fair to say he hardly looked a committed soul having just returned from a long layoff. His warm-ups had all the intensity required, and his twists and turns were powerful, suggesting a full recovery, but he looked unsure of himself and the confidence was gone when on the ball.

It's fair to say he hasn't recovered in style this season, but is it all his fault? Is he finished at the top level?

Falcao was never a complete striker. His hold-up play was OK, but his forte was poaching—finishing inside the box, heading home or curling efforts inside the far post. He was quick, decisive, confident and a willing runner off the shoulder.

In the right system he's a killer, but put him in the wrong situation and he'll look rather poor. A combination of low confidence, a shockingly poor systematic fit at Manchester United and lingering injury issues have killed his season.

Credit: IDI

Think back to his Atletico days, when Diego Simeone used him as a true "prima punta" in a counter-attacking system. With Diego Costa, Ardan Turan and Adrian running vertically behind him and playing incisive passes, Falcao was able to slip into the gaps that appeared and latch onto quicker passes.

But Van Gaal has United playing safe, careful football—the sort you'd expect to see from a team nervously trying to avoid relegation and trying not to make mistakes. It's efficient, but it's drab, and Falcao has to play with his back to goal—something not suited to his strengths as a player.

His conversion percentage, by and large, is fairly positive. He's converting chances at a reasonable rate—something mega-flop Fernando Torres never managed during his struggles.

Player	Club	Conversion Rate
Edin Dzeko	Man City	10.5%
Wilfried Bony	Man City	12.3%
Danny Ings	Burnley	13%
Jermain Defoe	Sunderland	13.3%
Radamel Falcao	Man Utd	13.3%
Charlie Austin	QPR	14.6%
Robin van Persie	Man Utd	15.4%
Diafra Sakho	West Ham	15.5%

The problem is, when you're paid £265,000 a week, you're expected to be a consistently excellent performer, a player who can bend the will of any game to his own and dominate. In terms of earnings, Falcao is in the exclusive, private club of star footballers. But performance-wise, he's locked in the basement.

It brings into question several things: his mentality, his immediate future and his reputation.

He's not helped himself by missing the sort of chances he used to convert. His conversion percentage isn't bad by comparison, but it's not what it was while at Atletico Madrid (22.8 percent, per WhoScored.com). It aids the belief that he's in dramatic decline, and when you tie in injuries and age (he's approaching 30 and has endured age-fraud allegations, per ESPN), he's easy to knock.

Can he recover mentally at another club next season, where he may have a shot at being worth his own wages? Many clubs will steer well clear of the Colombian, perhaps preferring him to play a prove-it season at Monaco, his parent club. 

The curious case of Radamel Falcao has baffled many this season and has created two clear schools of thought on his situation. What we can definitely deduce, though, is Van Gaal's style of play does him absolutely no good on a week-to-week basis.

Follow @stighefootball