There was a ruthless streak about Manchester United during Sunday’s statement win over Liverpool, with Ruben Amorim’s expensively assembled forward line finally beginning to fire in 2025/26.
Turning back the clock to January this year, the Red Devils played out a thrilling 2-2 draw at Anfield, with one notable moment in that stalemate seeing Rasmus Hojlund surge in behind the home defence, only to be denied by the imposing figure of Alisson from the angle.
The influential Brazilian also denied the Dane in similar fashion back in December 2023, with the game having been level at the time.
Alisson wasn’t involved this time around due to injury, nor was Hojlund, with new Bryan Mbeumo instead converting from a similarly acute angle inside just 63 seconds.
While Hojlund hardly inspired any confidence that he would make the most of such a chance, it was no surprise when last season’s 20-goal Brentford star dispatched his own attempt, having hit the ground running with three goals from his first nine games in a United shirt.
With £74m signing Benjamin Sesko chipping in with two himself this term, while Matheus Cunha’s ‘maverick’ talents have also earned rave reviews, there is a frontline to be feared once again at Old Trafford.
The days of Marcus Rashford and co now appear a distant memory…
Why Amorim was right to move on Marcus Rashford
Like it or not, Rashford is making the most of his dream move to Barcelona, having already registered 11 goals and assists in just his first 12 games for the LaLiga outfit, as per Transfermarkt.
On Tuesday night, Camp Nou’s new loan hero dispatched two efforts in exquisite fashion, rifling home at the near post to help steer Hansi Flick’s youthful side to a thumping 6-1 win over ten-man Olympiakos.
The 27-year-old is back smiling again, having kicked on from his brief renaissance at Aston Villa last term, with the January loan swoop to the Midlands yielding four goals and six assists in 17 games, including a statement showing against Paris Saint-Germain.
That wasn’t enough to coax Villa into paying a reported £40m buy clause, although Flick and co could strike a bargain next summer, with Rashford said to be available for as little as £26m.
Such a lowly price tag may reflect poorly on those back at United, although it’s hard to argue with Amorim’s decision to part ways, with the high-profile forward not seen since trudging off against Viktoria Plzen in December, prior to his absence from the Manchester derby.
A reported night out prior to the 4-0 win over Everton appeared to be the final straw for the new United boss, with Rashford previously punished for a trip to Belfast the season prior under Erik ten Hag.
One misdemeanour too many came amid a continued period of inconsistency, with the Englishman’s 30-goal heroics of 2022/23 standing out as a real anomaly in the post-Ole Gunnar Solskjaer era.
2024/25*
24
7 (3)
2023/24
43
8 (6)
2022/23
56
30 (11)
2021/22
32
5 (2)
2020/21
57
21 (18)
On a reported £300k-per-week at Old Trafford, Rashford simply wasn’t proving value for money, with Amorim right to have sent a message by ousting Rashford from his first-team ranks.
That message was also passed on to another member of the infamous ‘bomb squad’, with so much potential arguably wasted.
The Man Utd star who was destined for the No.7
It shows how much can change in such a short space of time in the footballing world that when deciding on the next number seven at Manchester United in the summer of 2023, there was a genuine clamour for Alejandro Garnacho to receive that honour.
The Spain-born Argentina international was fresh off the back of a breakthrough first season under Ten Hag, having chipped in with 10 goals and assists in all competitions, after previously scoring twice in the club’s FA Youth Cup final win the campaign prior.
That 2022/23 season saw the teenage winger produce notable moments of magic away at the likes of Real Sociedad, Fulham and Leeds United, having also produced a lively cameo off the bench in the FA Cup final defeat to Manchester City.
As noted by Samuel Luckhurst at the time, Garnacho was “under consideration” to succeed his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, as the club’s new number seven, albeit with new man Mason Mount surprisingly offered that status instead.
In hindsight, that move has perhaps backfired, with Mount scoring just five goals over the last two-and-a-bit years, enduring a frustrating, injury-hit spell that has only recently begun to spring into life.
Young, electric and looking like a “young Cristiano” – in the words of Paul Scholes at the time – a teenage Garnacho, meanwhile, looked every bit a United number seven, emerging as one of few fearless, dynamic forwards in Ten Hag’s ranks.
There has been a sense of revision since, but it’s difficult to forget just how exciting that version of the ex-Atletico Madrid starlet was. As noted by Statman Dave, he looked “generational”.
Repeatedly looked to as the man to impact proceedings from the bench, Garnacho relished his role as the game-changer, while also reaching the high point of his time in the senior set-up by scoring the opener in the victorious 2024 Wembley showpiece.
Even last term, for all the speculation surrounding his place under Amorim – having joined Rashford in being omitted from the December derby – the now 21-year-old still finished joint-second behind only Bruno Fernandes for both goals and assists at the club.
That being said, the cracks began to show, with the youngster notably failing to celebrate following his stunner against Leicester City, amid perceived abuse from supporters.
There was also the Europa League debacle, where Garnacho publicly voiced his frustrations at having started the Bilbao defeat on the bench.
Ill-advised and ill-disciplined, the fleet-footed winger had left Amorim – and the club – with little choice but to send him on his way, with United taking such a stance that it perhaps even diminished their initial £70m asking price down to just £40m this summer.
With a sense that Garnacho had got ahead of his station, he had to go, having since endured a turbulent start to life at new club Chelsea, with the weekend win over Nottingham Forest seeing him hooked at the break.
A player that seemingly needed to be loved and idolised, perhaps the polarising wideman would have benefitted from taking on the number seven two years ago, with there no doubt having been a groundswell of support behind him at the time.
Again, however, hindsight might suggest that United were wise not to enhance his ego so swiftly, with such an honour needing to be earned rather than dished out so readily.
Either way, Garnacho – unfortunately – is someone else’s problem now.