Manchester United has, to put it succinctly, greatly underperformed this season.

Only Burnley and Sheffield United have scored fewer goals than Erik Ten Hag’s team, who is now ranked seventh in the Premier League. That’s even with Rasmus Hojlund joining the team, who cost an incredible £72 million.

In light of this, the Red Devils’ only task in the January transfer window is to increase their offensive output, and their top target should be a center striker.

The struggle for a center forward in the most recent Man Utd moves

Man United and Aston Villa are expected to compete for Jonathan David’s signing in the January transfer window, according to Football Transfers.

The Lille forward wants to advance in his career, and joining the Premier League is something he has always wanted to do.

However, if departures don’t happen as a result of their financial fair play issue, the switch would be permanent, which might cost United this winter.

FFC provides all the information you need to follow your club’s winter transfer activity as the January transfer window approaches.

Jonathan David and Anthony Martial’s comparison

Despite multiple injury setbacks, Anthony Martial has had a strong Man United career. However, these injuries have ultimately kept him from being a major player for extended periods of time.

The France attacker’s contract expires this summer, therefore Ten Hag may try to remove him this winter in order to earn money. The forward missed 27 games last season as a result of five different injuries.

The funds earned might be set aside for David’s possible transfer—he’s a vital member of Lille. With just five goals in 17 Ligue 1 appearances this season, the Canadian hasn’t been at his best, but he has recently shown signs of improvement, scoring in three of his past five league games.

Nevertheless, David’s statistics from the previous season throughout the top European leagues are displayed in the table below, along with a comparison to his positional contemporaries.As you can see, the 23-year-old is a very technical center forward who, because of his skill with the ball at his feet, can flourish in any situation. Ten Hag’s team would benefit from this because they frequently control the ball against weaker opponents while holding out for counterattacks against stronger ones.

In addition to being a contemporary striker with the ability to run in behind, the Canadian may be employed as a target man by receiving the ball straight. This would enable United to rapidly go from attack to defense by taking advantage of Andre Onana’s accurate long deliveries. The forward’s strong pass completion rate indicates that he would also hold onto the ball, helping his team maintain control.

Above all, though, David is skilled at placing the ball into the net. The striker has a track record of scoring goals; only last season, he scored 24 goals in 37 games in Ligue 1. With the youthful Hojlund scoring just once in 15 Premier League games thus far, the Red Devils have been lacking this kind of dependable center-forward this season.

The 20-year-old, who frequently plays on the periphery of the game—as evidenced by the fact that the United starlet is in the bottom 86% of strikers in the league in terms of passes attempted—would benefit from a fresh approach from the former Gent ace.

Considering that Onana has the joint most clean sheets this season, United’s lack of goals has hindered them. Therefore, David would greatly enhance the offense not only with his goals but also by relieving Hojlund of some of the burden, as he is clearly unhappy with his lack of results.

Ten Hag would be remiss if he didn’t try to sign “one of the best strikers in the world,” as Tony Marinaro, the media personality, put it.