Edinson Cavani gave Manchester United fans a moment to remember at Old Trafford Edinson Cavani had a major impact on his first Man Utd app...
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| Edinson Cavani gave Manchester United fans a moment to remember at Old Trafford |
Edinson Cavani had a major impact on his first Man Utd appearance in front of fans but it was a frustrating night at Old Trafford against Fulham.
For 24 hours the only Premier League striker anybody was talking about was Harry Kane. It was going to take something special to knock Kane off the back pages and the list of Twitter trends, but 15 minutes into the return of fans at Old Trafford Edinson Cavani produced just that.
For eight months Manchester United fans have taken Cavani to their hearts through the medium of social media. Unable to see him in the flesh, they adored his workrate, enthusiasm and excellence from a distance. They liked what they were seeing through their television screens.
This was their first chance to see the 34-year-old up close. On a day when the original ‘King’ became the third player inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame, his heir apparent wasted no time in cementing his status as Old Trafford’s new regal leader.
Cavani received the loudest cheer when the teams were first read out by Alan Keegan around 45 minutes before kick-off, but that was nothing compared to the noise that would erupt an hour later.
The 10,000 fans inside Old Trafford had waited 436 days to celebrate another goal but when it arrived it was almost worth the wait. Almost.
Cavani had a clear run on goal when David de Gea’s clearance made its way to him, but his bravura led to him clipping a 40-yard lob over the head of Alphonse Areola. The ball sailed serenely into the Stretford End net and Old Trafford had lift-off, for now. Within minutes the first rendition of ‘Give it, give it, give it to Edi Cavani’ was ringing around the ground. It certainly won’t be the last.
He had already earned a roar from the fans inside the ground, closing down Areola with gusto inside the first few minutes, showing the energetic pressing that has made such a fan favourite despite all his work so far coming in front of empty stands.
For all the talk of Kane after the leak of his desire to leave Tottenham, it’s Cavani who is the Premier League’s form striker at the moment. This was a ninth goal in 10 games for the red hot Uruguayan.
There might still be sense in United pushing to sign Kane this summer, but at upwards of £100million you have to wonder how necessary he is for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side. Kane is a world-class player, but his game has evolved from a natural No. 9 to something more approaching a No. 10.
There’s no guarantee he would dovetail as naturally with Bruno Fernandes as Cavani does. Cavani wears the No. 7, as every Old Trafford King should, but positionally he’s a nine, if he does drift away from the penalty area it’s usually wider, away from the territory occupied by Fernandes. Kane’s game has become dropping deeper in central areas.
It certainly feels like there are other priorities for United, such as centre back and centre midfield, especially given Solskjaer's perplexing decision to stick with the caution of Fred and Scott McTominay against opponents who will be playing Championship football next season and their poor defensive record, with 43 goals now conceded.
But it's the form of Cavani that is the most compelling argument for not splurging nine figures on Kane. United might only get another 12 months from Cavani, but their options next summer at centre forward could be greater, with Erling Haaland perhaps available then if he doesn't leave Dortmund this summer.
And just maybe United will only need another year of Cavani. At the moment he looks like the striker capable of scoring the goals to propel this team closer to the title. Like Eric Cantona, he might burn brightly but briefly. Even briefer than the Frenchman. His five years at Old Trafford were enough to get him third on the list of Premier League Hall of Famers. Cavani might struggle to reach that status in two years, but at United he’s well on his way to becoming a hero.
Fernandes was compared to Cantona a year ago for the influence he was having at United, but it might just be that it's Cavani who is the closest comparison. Cantona was the catalyst for United ending their last title drought. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that Cavani can propel United to getting close to doing the same as year number nine without top spot turns around, but to achieve that this squad might will need improvements elsewhere, which is why Kane shouldn't top the list of priorities this summer.
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