Despite struggles in his first five months in England, there may just be a way for Radamel Falcao to remain at Manchester United once his current year-long loan deal comes to an end.
[ MORE: Rooney isn’t scoring; LVG knows why ]
Speaking to reporters ahead of Man United’s sixth-round FA Cup date with League 1 side Preston North End, United manager Louis van Gaal said not only has a decision yet to be made, but also revealed the criteria by which Falcao’s final days of the 2014-15 season will be evaluated.
Van Gaal, on judging Falcao, from ESPN FC:“There are more aspects for a striker than goals. For example in the game with Burnley [last Tuesday] you have seen the header back for [Chris] Smalling to score was from Falcao.
“To be approachable for your fellow players is also an aspect. I shall not judge only on the goals. It is a bigger view than that.”
While Van Gaal should be applauded for taking an objective approach in how he evaluates and deploys his players, the only thing Falcao has ever done at a world-class level is score goals. It’s one thing for Wayne Rooney to endure a prolonged scoring slump when playing in midfield, it’s whole other matter for Falcao to collect $420,000 a week and rarely contribute in other aspects of the game.
