Chicharito: Showing maturity on the pitch and off it

Javier Hernandez, on Sunday, retweeted (and later removed) a Carlos Vela interview in which he said that his compatriot would have to think about leaving United if first team opportunities continue to be slim. Vela claimed – and rightly so – that Hernandez is one of the best finishers in the Premier League and that a player of his quality deserves to play more games.

This in itself is hardly a revelation for United fans. The United faithful, and presumably the management as well, have long lauded Chicharito’s importance to the team and realized that his performances merit a more regular starting role. But there arises a feeling of helplessness when it comes to figuring out just how to make this possible.

Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie are virtually irreplaceable as the two strikers, while there is growing support for moving Shinji Kagawa into a more central position, further reducing the likelihood of Hernandez starting. In addition, Danny Welbeck’s versatility has pushed Hernandez even further down the pecking order.

The fact that Hernandez has now chosen to indicate that he may end up leaving should be a cause for concern. He remains a very dangerous player; one of the few pure number 9s still plying their trade in Europe’s top leagues. Often compared to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, he is a true goal-poacher who relies on his sharp and intelligent movement to get on the end of crosses and through-balls.

But the most desirable quality of Little Pea is his ability to deliver when it matters most, as he did most recently against Stoke City two weeks ago. He is a big match player. The winner he netted against Liverpool in the Capital One Cup was his third against the Merseysiders. He has scored 7 goals in 12 matches against Chelsea, including a winner from the bench last season.

Hernandez has scored 34 goals for Manchester United in 81 Premier League appearances (and 54 in 125 appearances overall), resulting in a goals/game average of 0.42. Rooney averages 0.51 goals/game in the Premier League for Manchester United, while van Persie averages a superb 0.68. This does not reflect positively on Hernandez’s goal scoring and the case for his inclusion in the United first eleven is further weakened considering that he adds little to the build up play.

Career statistics for Manchester United. Source: SoccerBase

But a closer look at the figures tells a different story altogether. 46.9% of Hernandez’s Premier League appearances have come from the bench. In contrast, the corresponding figure for Rooney and van Persie stands at 0.094% and 0.093% respectively – indication that the goals/game stats shown above are grossly distorted.

That is indeed the case, as evidenced by the figures in the table below. In the previous season, Hernandez needed just under 107 minutes of football to score a goal, less than the prolific van Persie, who scored a goal every 123.8 minutes. Moreover, both his conversion rate and shooting accuracy were the best out of United’s four strikers.

2012-13 season statistics. Source: The Daily Mail Website

This can be put down to the fact that most of his shots were from inside the box – high percentage positions from which you would expect top quality strikers to hit the target. But these figures still point to his high productivity when he actually does play.

For an indication of how good he can be when given regular playing time, you only need to look at his goal scoring record for Mexico. 35 goals in 57 international appearances gives him a better career goals/game ratio (0.61) than Cristiano Ronaldo (0.41) and Lionel Messi (0.45).

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 25: Javier Hernandez of Manchester United in action during the Capital One Cup Third Round match betwen Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on September 25, 2013 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

If Hernandez does leave Old Trafford, the negative impact will be two-fold. United will lose a valuable member, a player who can guarantee 20 goals a season given regular starts. Hernandez will also be a huge asset to any team he might go to (with the exception of United’s cross-town rivals), to the detriment of United in a very competitive Premier League. And there are a few top teams which could do with a striker of Hernandez’s quality.

Nicklas Bendtner is no viable backup to Olivier Giroud, while Chelsea’s striker troubles are well documented. While he may yet do so, Roberto Soldado has so far failed to light up the Premier League and Jermain Defoe does not seem to be Andre Villas Boas’s cup of tea.

The footballing world is a place in which media is increasingly being used by players to get their points across and force their clubs to make a statement. Long running transfer sagas with players pushing for moves was the norm in this summer’s transfer window. Although such public dealings between the players and their clubs make for entertaining and interesting stories, these players hardly endear themselves to the fans. The club administration would also rather not wash their dirty linen in public.

In such a situation, Chicharito’s cheeky, yet unobtrusive tweet was an extremely well managed move.

Up until now, it looked like Chicharito was willing to bide his time and wait for his chance. But with the World Cup around the corner, something needed to be done. The situation has been thrust into the light by Hernandez in a very smart and tactful manner. The tweet represents a proverbial dipping of hands in the matter, rather than grabbing it head on. And maybe, that is all that was needed. He did, after all, start against Real Sociedad in midweek.