Man Utd could sign Cavani 2.0 who once got “destroyed” at Old Trafford

If it wasn’t already evident before, the new nadir of Anthony Martial’s lengthy stint at Manchester United has only served to reinforce the club’s desperate need for a striker.

The unreliable, injury-prone Frenchman – who has missed the last five Premier League games – has now reportedly been told to train alone in order to improve his fitness, with the 28-year-old following in the footsteps of Jadon Sancho in being cut adrift by Erik ten Hag.

That latest development comes at a time in which the former Monaco man finally looks to be heading for the exit door in the near future with just six months left to run on his existing deal, with United seemingly taking the wise approach not to extend the contract of a player who has scored just 12 league goals since the start of 2020/21.

The only issue is, however, that the Red Devils are lacking in depth in the striking department outside of £72m summer signing, Rasmus Hojlund, with even the young Dane also under the microscope having scored just two top-flight goals to date – albeit with both of those coming in his last two league outings.

After missing out on leading target Harry Kane during the previous window, the 20-year-old Hojlund has somewhat unfairly been tasked with the responsibility of being United’s main man in attack, despite scoring just nine Serie A goals last season for Atalanta.

Despite that obvious need to find a rival to the towering youngster, however, United should not give in to desperation by signing another relatively unproven talent from Italy…

Man Utd could sign former Premier League flop

According to journalist Graeme Bailey, the Old Trafford outfit – as well as rivals Chelsea – have been “offered the chance‘ to seal the signing of Juventus striker, Moise Kean, with the former Everton man seemingly available on loan after falling down the pecking order in Turin.

With Max Allegri favouring the likes of Dusan Vlahovic, Arkadiusz Milik and teenage sensation, Kenan Yildiz, the 23-year-old has been restricted to just six league starts this season for the Bianconeri.

As a player who was previously linked with United back in 2019 – having also reportedly turned the club down years earlier – the 15-cap Italy international has certainly been on the Red Devils’ radar over an extended period, although that long-term admiration does not mean that Ten Hag and co should pounce on this opportunity.

Moise Kean’s record vs Man Utd

The out-of-favour Juve man has not had much joy when coming up against United in the past, failing to score or register an assist in four meetings with the club in his senior career to date.

The Australian-born marksman notably endured a particularly humiliating moment at Old Trafford back in December 2019 during his time with the Toffees, with caretaker boss Duncan Ferguson taking the decision to withdraw the striker just 18 minutes after bringing him on as a substitute.

While Ferguson insisted that such a decision was merely a tactical one with the Merseysiders seeking to cling on to a point in that 1-1 draw, there was a seemingly a feeling that one-time Rangers man had “destroyed” the confidence of the then-youngster with that brutal act, as per pundit John Arne Riise.

That arguably remains the most memorable moment of Kean’s dismal stint at Goodison Park, with the £29m signing scoring just four goals and contributing only two assists in 39 games, prior to being sent on loan to Paris Saint-Germain and former club, Juventus.

Although that stint at the Parc des Princes did yield 17 goals in 41 games for the Ligue 1 side, the 6 foot hitman’s return to the Allianz Stadium – which was made permanent last year – has not gone to plan, with his total tally for the club standing at just 22 goals in 115 games.

Moise Kean’s season by numbers

There was once much hope surrounding the £64k-per-week centre-forward, with his time at PSG even seeing him likened to a certain Edinson Cavani, with Eric Rabesandratana seeing a likeness between the pair due to their “mentality and effort”.

Even that comparison to Cavani – who scored for 200 goals for the Parisien side – is not without issue, with the Uruguayan veteran enduring a mixed time of things at the Theatre of Dreams, after signing in 2020.

A return of 19 goals in 59 games is hardly awful, yet far too regularly was the former Napoli man unavailable for selection, with journalist Samuel Luckhurst accusing him of “crying off” during that dismal 2021/22 campaign.

Much like Cavani, availability has also been a lingering problem for Kean, having already missed 46 days so far this term with various injuries – while currently being sidelined by a shin issue.

Those woes have ensured that the Juve man has failed to score or register a single assist this season from his 12 Serie A games – only picking up two yellow cards for his troubles in that time.

The misfiring marksman has also created just one ‘big chance’, missed four ‘big chances’ of his own and been restricted to a measly average of just 14.3 touches per game in the Italian top-flight, with United not set to be snapping up a talent who is firing on all cylinders at present.

In truth, if a short-term deal is to be agreed this month, the Red Devils will need someone who can hit the ground running, yet with Kean’s Cavani-esque injury woes and his prior failings in the Premier League, he is seemingly one to avoid.