MANCHESTER UNITED are BETTER with Wout Weghorst than Cristiano Ronaldo, the stunning stats show.
That is despite the Dutchman barely scoring since arriving at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo, 38, was axed by United in November following his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
That left Erik ten Hag without a recognised senior striker in his squad with the Red Devils battling on four fronts.
And he made the shock swoop for Burnley centre forward Weghorst, who in turn cut his loan at Besiktas short to make his temporary switch to Old Trafford.
To say he has struggled for goals would be an understatement – the Carabao Cup winner has managed just two goals in 19 starts and is yet to get one in the Premier League.
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But despite Ronaldo hitting the net 11 times in his last 19 starts for the club, the data proves United are a stronger team with the giant Holland international up front rather than the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and record-breaking machine.
In those last 19 starts, Ronaldo helped United to nine wins, three draws and seven defeats.
Over the same period, Weghorst’s return is a whopping 12 wins, four draws and just three losses – a significant improvement.
Though those are across all competitions and include knockout cup games, that would work out as 40 points for Weghorst – 2.11 per game – compared to 30 points or 1.58 per game for Ronaldo.
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As well as better results, United – who face Brentford tonight – also score more when Weghorst is in the team.
Those 19 games have produced 37 team goals – 1.95 per game – while Ronaldo’s impact sees that total drop to just 23 goals -1.21 per game.
Plenty of pundits have suggested Ronaldo was not good for the entire team to thrive – despite his undoubted personal quality.
Weghorst’s ability has come under major question marks, especially in the 2-0 defeat at Newcastle on Sunday, but could get the nod against the Bees with few alternatives for Ten Hag.
But former team-mate Gary Neville could not decide whether he would prefer Weghorst or Ronaldo.
Neville told Sky Sports: “I called Weghorst a placeholder because United didn’t invest in a striker United would want.
“This experiment has to stop, Weghorst has to come out, it can no longer go on.
“It is the strangeness of football is having a player who isn’t good enough to be a Manchester United forward but has brought more profit to the team. I believe Ronaldo is the greatest player of all time.
“I think ultimately the reason he left Ronaldo out was because of the stats, I think it is clear Weghorst isn’t fit to lace Ronaldo’s boots but those are stark stats playing in the same period with the same team-mates, he was really poor on Sunday, he shouldn’t be there, but the reason he is there is because of those stats.
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“I don’t think either of them at this moment in time should play for Man United.
“I don’t know who I would pick, you would move it game to game. If I was playing at Old Trafford I’d play Ronaldo, away from home probably Weghorst.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
