Robin van Persie is having a down season at Manchester United and if it weren’t for the big money Ed Woodward spent on retaining Wayne Rooney and acquiring Radamel Falcao, this would be a much much bigger issue.No Premier League player has scored more goals (70) than Robin van Persie over the last four seasons.
But RVP only has one goal this season which put United up 2-nil on West Ham.
Van Persie makes it 2-0 https://t.co/hV0ZSOU8fi
— Man Utd Vines (@ManUtdVines) September 27, 2014
He had a great scoring opportunity last night, with a shot that hit the post and banked out. It was close. Still, for what we saw from Van Persie in the World Cup, especially in the early stages, we had higher expectations. Yes, Van Persie slumped last year under David Moyes, but it was thought that reuniting with his country Louis van Gaal would make him the striker of old again. That hasn’t happened.
Of course, his vacationing and issues with his fitness delayed his 2014-15 debut, and that hasn’t helped.
The Daily Mail had a great write up on this very topic. It’s a must read.
Robin van Persie barely turned up in United’s 2-2 draw at West Bromwich on Monday night and fans and pundits alike are starting to notice.
Deployed as the spearhead of United’s attack at The Hawthorns in the absence of the suspended Wayne Rooney and the jet-lagged Radamel Falcao, a sluggish Van Persie took 75 minutes to make an eye-catching contribution.
With instinctive control on the periphery of the box, he unleashed a volley that smacked the base of the post, coming within millimetres of a United equaliser. It was the one glimpse of his best all night.
In the end, it required Van Persie’s compatriot Daley Blind to rescue the team late on and keep the gap to Premier League leaders Chelsea down to a mere 10 points.
For the rest of the match, Robin van Persie was a shadow of his former self. Absent-minded and ineffective, he roamed around without ever looking like scoring.
Couldn’t have said it better myself. The pressure really is on Robin van Persie right now. A couple weeks ago he said that Champions League was the goal; and a very realistic goal. They’ll need him to be his old self if the Red Devils are to get there.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and very often writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partners with Fox Sports. Read his features stories in the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. Listen to him on 1620 The Zone. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks). His work has been featured in hundreds of media outlets including The Washington Post and ESPN 2