Where does Chicharito go from here?

The second season syndrome has hit the very best players to play in the red of Manchester United, no more so than Javier Hernández Balcázar, otherwise known as ‘Chicharito’. Not much was known about the little Mexican before the summer of 2010. Playing for Chivas in Mexico, he was always destined for more. He proved this in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa by scoring two goals for Mexico on their way to the quarter finals. This sent clubs into overdrive, trying to secure his services before one another, and in July 2010 he became a Manchester United player. Nobody knew how successful he would turn out to be in his first season at Old Trafford. 2010-11 couldn’t have gone better for Chicharito, scoring a fantastic twenty goals on United’s way to winning the Premier League and reaching a third Champions League final in four years.

Fans instantly fell in love with the Mexican. He was good-looking, happy and most importantly scoring goals for fun. He was the new superstar of football. There was even talk in the summer of 2011 of Real Madrid making a 30 million pound bid for the twenty four year old. These advances were resisted and United fan, myself included, were looking forward to seeing what he could do in his second season, especially with new arrival Ashley Young’s deadly right foot on the left hand side. Unfortunately, it was a disappointing season for both United and Chicharito. He was plagued with little niggles all season long which hindered his goal scoring immensely. He ended the season with a modest twelve goals in all competitions, only two more than Portuguese international Nani.

This has left everyone wondering, where does Chicharito go from here? With Danny Welbeck signing a new long term contract at the club and new boy Angelo Henriquez coming in from Chile, one wonders where Javier fits into Sir Alex’s plans for the future. With Dimitar Bebatov seemingly heading for the exit from Old Trafford at the beginning of the summer, things were looking up for Hernandez, one less person to battle with for places. As the summer has worn on though, United have been linked with a host of big name strikers including Robert Lewandowski, Fernando Llorente and of course Robin van Persie. The latter of the trio recently became a United player. Upon hearing this news, many began questioning Hernandez’s future in Manchester. But why?

Strikers. They’ve been an infatuation of Sir Alex Ferguson’s for the last twenty-five years. He has always insisted on at least two world class strikers in his ranks at one time. This has culminated in selection dilemmas that have shortened the United careers of some in the past. 1999 is the best example of this. It was perhaps the greatest year in Manchester United’s glittering history both for the treble and the fact that we had four of the best strikers in the world playing for us at the same time. Cole, Yorke, Sheringham and Solskjaer worked in perfect harmony together throughout the treble winning campaign. Rotation was key. Sir Alex had to make sure that each striker got their fair share of games, despite having his favourite pairing of Cole and Yorke. This resulted in us winning the lot, as well as our strikers hitting some sensational numbers in front of goal.

So, what’s to say that we can’t enjoy the same success again this season? We could potentially have four top strikers at the club at one time once again. Rooney, Chicharito, van Persie and Welbeck offer a strength in depth in front of goal that is unmatched anywhere in the world. With two of those strikers under the age of 25, it is also a strikeforce that offers longevity too. Chicharito looks set to enjoy a good season in 12-13 following a full summers rest, even missing the Olympics to catch his breath as it were. Bringing in a twenty-nine year old striker who isn’t able to play fifty games a season will not hinder Chicharito’s development whatsoever. He could still manage to play around 25-30 games this season, and that’s not even taking into consideration Robin van Persie’s mixed injury record at Arsenal.

Hernandez remains optimistic, despite the rumours of Robin van Persie’s arrival picking up pace. Talking about van Persie: “Having that competition in the team can be good. I will be ready when the gaffer wants me to play”. One can only assume that he feels that he will get his chance over the course of the season and that he is confident in his ability, something that has been questioned at times. I for one certainly hope that he does get his chance to at least prove himself, along with the likes of Danny Welbeck and Federico Macheda. Let’s hope that they have learned from seasons gone by and have come back better players than they were last year.Be sure to follow me on Twitter (@HammyMUFC) for Manchester United opinion, news and discussion!