Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was delighted with Mason Greenwood after the youngster’s brace against AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League on Thursday. And the form of the teenager shows the Red Devils may not need Erling Haaland after all.
Greenwood is seen as the future of Manchester United and, at the tender age of 18, has already scored six goals across all competitions this season.
His brace against Alkmaar on Thursday was proof of the potency that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been hailing all throughout the campaign.
Greenwood’s first goal was sumptuous. After the ball broke loose, the United star rifled a terrific low drive into the bottom right-hand corner.
And his second was also impressive, with the United star cutting in from the right before unleashing a powerful shot that sailed beyond Marco Bizot in the Alkmaar goal.
Earlier in the season, Solskjaer said Greenwood was one of the best finishers he’d seen.
“Mason is one of the best finishers I’ve seen,” Solskjaer said. “And I’ve played with quite a few decent ones.”
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“When you’ve got strikers who can score goals, you should never lose the appetite…be ready to take your chances.”
By ‘a few decent ones’ he means the likes of Andy Cole, Teddy Sheringham, Wayne Rooney, Dwight Yorke, Andy Cole and Eric Cantona.
And Greenwood’s fine form means a transfer for Erling Haaland, who is understood to be one of the club’s main transfer targets, may not be needed.
Sure, the Norwegian seems to be another potential superstar. With 28 goals for Red Bull Salzburg this season, Europe’s elite are taking note.
But United have Greenwood, a player Solskjaer has been keen to stress will be a first team regular in the foreseeable future.
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Yet Greenwood is deserving of a place in the first team and, unlike Martial, hasn’t been given the chance to lead the line on a regular basis.
Haaland would be a shrewd acquisition.
But not a particularly needed one. Greenwood, Martial and even Marcus Rashford can play down the middle. Daniel James, too, has been deployed their on a couple of occasions.
And United should cool their interest in Haaland because they have other areas that need addressing, like the centre of their midfield.
Haaland is good but, if given the chance, Greenwood has the potential to be even better.