Robin van Persie spent eight years at Arsenal before transferring to Manchester United, and it didn’t take long for the forward to do his goalscoring job on the Red Devils.
The Dutchman netted 30 goals in 48 appearances, and the next year, the 2013-14 season, had a fair amount of injuries slow his progress at Old Trafford, his 28 caps resulting in 18 goals.
The striker then went shined in World Cup qualification and performed fairly well in the 2014 World Cup this summer, prompting some to believe that, after United snagged a few key transfers, the Feyenoord youth product would resume his consistent goalscoring from 2012.
So far, Van Persie’s numbers don’t jump out at you, three tallies in nine contests, but he did bury the late game-tying goal against Chelsea a couple weeks back. As long as his scoring touch arrives at opportune moments, critics have less reason to denounce the striker’s attacking play; however, Van Persie’s responsibility revolves around putting the ball in the back of the net, and one may anticipate nothing less.
Still, on a team that has appreciated bright moments, regular prosperity on both the defensive and offensive ends has evaded Louis van Gaal’s side.
Van Persie, although he admitted to feeling accountable for United’s setbacks, asserted that he originally came to esteemed Premier League squad for Sir Alex Ferguson’s technique. The longtime manager called it quits a year after Van Persie came into the fold.
“Three goals in nine games is not enough,” he said to Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant, via The Guardian. “Against Chelsea I had a nice chance and I had three options: chip it, go round the keeper or just [shoot] straight at the goal. I chose the last and safest. If I wouldn’t have thought it over I would just chip it. I just have to trust again in my intuition.
“My decision to come to Manchester was partly because of the presence of Ferguson, or excuse me, Sir Alex. And he told me he’d stay for another three years. I enjoyed his approach.”