Questions have been asked over why Manchester United signed Joshua Zirkzee, with claims he is not built for the Premier League.
United forked out £36.5million to land the Dutch forward in the summer – paying above his release clause at former club Bologna to make him the first signing of the INEOS era.
He enjoyed a quick start to life in England, scoring a late winner on his Premier League debut to secure an opening day victory over Fulham.
And while it may still be too early to judge the 23-year-old too harshly, there is a growing feeling that it was a false dawn given his performances since, having failed to find the net again.
He did provide a crucial assist in the 1-1 draw with Fenerbahce in the Europa League, but other than his pass to goalscorer Christian Eriksen he looked off the pace as United’s starting striker.
Zirkzee got the nod to lead the line over Rasmus Hojlund against the Turkish giants, but didn’t appear to be on the same wavelength as Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho either side of him.
There was even a moment in the game when Garnacho looked visibly frustrated after Zirkzee took too long to pass him the ball, missing a chance to hit Jose Mourinho’s side on the counter.
The Dutchman was replaced early in the second-half with Hojlund, and his lack of form has even led to rumours of a possible exit in the January transfer window.
And talkSPORT’s chief football correspondent Alex Crook has questioned why the Red Devils signed the young ace, particularly following a conversation he had with an executive of a rival Premier League team.
“It looks like more poor recruitment from Manchester United,” Crook said on the latest episode of talkSPORT’s Inside Devils YouTube show.
“I remember speaking to a very senior executive of a Premier League club much lower down the food chain when there was this striker merry-go-round going on – Dominic Solanke, Ivan Toney being mentioned as players who could join elite clubs.
“And he said to me Joshua Zirkzee is not really suited for the Premier League.
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“If somebody at a bottom-half Premier League club can spot that, why on earth are Manchester United putting their faith in this guy?
“He looks a bit cumbersome. Rasmus Hojlund is still playing his way back to full fitness and confidence, and he looked a lot more effective at the top end of the pitch than Zirkzee did when he came off the bench.”
Crook did concede, though, that United have been guilty of putting too much pressure on their recent young signings too soon after making the huge step up to Old Trafford.
“The other issue we’ve got, and you can say this about Hojlund too, is what United have done over the last couple of seasons is they have overused players before they are ready,” he added.
“It took a long time for Hojlund to get up to speed in the Premier League last season, but it’s almost desperation that you spend this money on a player and you need instant dividends.
“Proper clubs don’t do it like that, do they?”
Manchester correspondent Laurie Whitwell also offered his Zirkzee take on the Inside Devils show, saying the former Bayern Munich ace doesn’t currently have the physical attributes needed to succeed in the English top flight.
“It feels like a physicality thing, maybe,” he said.
“His last season was in Italy and the speed of the league there is not as quick as the Premier League, which has caught him on his heels a few times in league matches this season.
“Which is odd, because he started well and that’s the thing he did well against Fulham to get his first goal, it was arriving in the box at the right time to get on the end of it.
“But it just feels that he doesn’t have that spark, that initial acceleration to get into these positions.
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“United did look at Benjamin Sesko in the summer and they couldn’t get him, so they went for Zirkzee and the release clause played a part in that.
“But you have to question how much they’re actually expecting from this guy. He’s an alternative to Hojlund but at the moment it looks like it’s going to take time for him to get to the level United need.”
