Manchester United's Wild Imagination Between Two Sobs

Manchester United has struggled with goal production throughout this season. In stark contrast, Newcastle United boasts a goal-scoring machine in the form of world-class striker Alexander Isak. The upcoming clash between the two teams this weekend raises a utopian question: what would Manchester United's fate be if they had a striker as sharp as Isak?

MU has only scored 37 goals after 31 weeks in the English Premier League. They are among the six teams with the lowest productivity, even below the 17th-ranked team Wolverhampton Wanderers (43 goals). Isak's individual record of 20 goals has already surpassed half of the "Red Devils'" total.

The team coached by Ruben Amorim did not lack opportunities or creativity. They were simply less sharp in front of the goal, including making numerous poor final decisions. Creative midfielder Bruno Fernandes serves as evidence. No player in the league has created more chances than him (75 times).

Imagine if Fernandes' magical touch met Isak's predator instincts. Manchester United might not struggle to score goals as they do now. Perhaps, they could even compete with Newcastle at the top of the standings. Unlike the current situation, Fernandes and his teammates are languishing in 13th place.

Instead of having a striker with a double-digit goal tally, MU relies solely on Joshua Zirzkee and Rasmus Hojlund. Together, they have contributed only six goals in the league. This combined total is even less than Fernandes' record (8 goals), who operates in the second line.

The distinction of Isak from most mediocre strikers lies in his goal conversion rate. Isak is highly efficient in translating opportunities into goals. His conversion rate reaches 26.6 percent, requiring only about four shots to score one goal. This conversion rate is far above that of Hojlund (14.2 percent) and Zirkzee (11.1 percent).

Former United striker Wayne Rooney said Hojlund and Zirkzee also lost the ball too often. However, they cannot be blamed entirely for the team's dysfunctional attacking line. "Sometimes I make mistakes like that, but I'm surrounded by great players," he told BBC Sport.

"MU played too slowly, leaving the central forwards with nothing to do but wait. There was not enough creativity around them. They held onto the ball without meaningful support from the midfielders or defenders. So, the problem lies on both sides (not just the forwards)," continued Rooney, who contributed a total of 253 goals for MU.

Rooney's statement is supported by the expected goals (xG) statistics. Hojlund's xG figures (2.98) and Zirkzee's (4.65) are relatively low for a striker. Compare that to Isak's 16.28 xG. The frequent rotation of Hojlund and Zirkzee has an effect, but their figures should not be that low.

Regardless, great strikers should be able to find and create chances themselves. They are not just tasked with taking chances. That is what Isak did at Newcastle. He often created momentum with dribbling, effective off-the-ball movement or dropping back into midfield.

"You have to see how clever he is when he misses a pass. He gets back onside, turns his run and is ready to score again. He often picks the ball up in the middle and can hurt opponents from there. He is a real threat, as well as a perfect finish," said Alan Shearer, Newcastle's legendary striker.

A figure like Isak is still a missing piece in Amorim's grand plan. As is known, the coach's success with the Portuguese team Sporting CP was also inspired by the top spearhead, Viktor Gyokeres. Gyokeres' playing style is similar to Isak who can trigger magical moments alone.

Amorim has not revealed any major plans for the summer transfer window. For now, he wants to focus on Hojlund and Zirkzee. Incidentally, Zirkzee's performance has started to improve compared to the first half of the season. He scored goals in important matches, such as against Olympique Lyon in the middle of last week.

MU's match against host Newcastle at St. James Park Stadium, on Sunday at 22.30 WIB, will be a test for Zirkzee. In the first meeting, last December, Zirkzee was immediately pulled out after performing poorly for the first 33 minutes. He was worried that he would experience a crisis of confidence.

“Since then, he has come back. He has improved after all the hard work done with the staff. Then, I played him again. That is the only way to give confidence to a player. He showed great character to recover from that moment and start scoring important goals,” Amorim said.

As if destined to meet MU, Isak has recovered from a groin problem in the last few games. Newcastle assistant coach Jason Tindall said the Swedish international striker has trained as usual and is ready to be played on Sunday.

In the imaginary world, MU might have expected Isak to be on their side. However, reality shattered that. Isak was actually in the front line of the opposing team to add to the "Red Devils" defensive crisis caused by goalkeeper Andre Onana. The only "Isak" that MU might get from the match was just sobbing. (AP/REUTERS)