El Chicharito : The next big thing?

Javier Hernández Balcázar

Mexico’s stock is soaring high on the football scene and Javier Hernandez a.k.a. ‘El Chicharito’ is the new poster boy of Mexican football. Hernandez previously unknown, 5 ft 9 inch tall striker was a star striker for the famous Mexican club “Chivas Guadalajara”. It was in 2009 that this bright young talent was spotted by Manchester United, who were convinced of the Mexican’s abilities to perform on the big stage. His covert move to Old Trafford and his subsequent exploits at the World Cup and the pre-season friendlies have left everyone in awe of Manchester United’s brilliant piece of business and the youngster’s exquisite talent. Clocked at 32.15 kmph as the fastest player in the World Cup, El Chicharito is, in the words of Sir Alex Ferguson, a demure “two-footed, very quick, natural goal scorer”. At 22, Hernandez has won ubiquitous praise after becoming the first Mexican to represent Manchester United. His move to Old Trafford has come at precisely the right time for the Red Devils who were left handicapped last season without a seasoned goal scoring partner for Wayne Rooney after the departures of Ronaldo and Tevez.

Last season, out of the 86 goals Manchester United scored in the EPL, 34 came from Wayne Rooney, whose injury at the business end of the season hampered the team’s prospects badly, accentuated by Dimitar Berbatov’s continued unsatisfactory performance and Owen’s injury. In retrospect, the matches against Blackburn and Chelsea could have been won had Manchester United, had an in-form clinical poacher. Too much reliance on Rooney made Manchester United pay the price as they exited the UCL and lost the race for the EPL title in a span of two weeks. In their new number 14, Man Utd have a young and energetic in-form striking option. Likened by many as the next Solksjaer, Hernandez possesses the much needed celebrity that has been missing since Ronaldo’s departure.

With Hernadez, Manchester United can play 4-4-2, 4-3-3 or 4-3-1-2 with Berbatov feeding Wazza and Chicarito from the position that best suits the languid Bulgarian. With Owen back and Macheda maturing, Manchester United should not face a dearth of goals. With odds stacked in Hernandez’s favour, ‘The little pea’ could be the next big thing in English football.