When Manchester United signed Carlos Tevez on a two year loan in August 2007 they were coming to the absolute peak of their powers.
And, although he didn’t start every week, his contribution took Manchester United to Champions League glory that season against Chelsea in Moscow.
United went on to sign Dimitar Berbatov that summer and even though that limited Tevez’s first team opportunities the feeling was that he would make his deal permanent after the loan expired.
Somehow it didn’t happen and Manchester United let a superb player join Manchester City. It was a poor decision by Sir Alex and seemed represent the beginning of a slow downward curve. Although Manchester United made another Champions League final after Tevez left, they never quite hit the heights of previous seasons.
Manchester United have hopefully learned their lesson and won’t make the same mistake with Radamel Falcao. The Colombian scored his first goal for United last weekend and his all round performance hinted at a man beginning to rediscover the form which made him the best striker in Europe before serious injury blighted his career.
We stil believe that this guy will eventually eclipse Angel di Maria as the new star of Manchester United. His instinct for where to position himself is phenomenal. He still has that burst of pace which can flummox defenders. And his passing and link up play is first class.
Reports this week suggest that personal terms have been agreed on a permanent move to Old Trafford. With Falcao coming back to the boil it really is an exciting time to follow Manchester United and the club must make absolutely certain that they tie him down to a permanent deal early, before his form alerts Europe’s other big boys.
