Wout Weghorst may have just enough of what Manchester United need

Wout Weghorst, who is hoping to secure a permanent deal at Old Trafford, has come up trumps in many areas of his game, despite a lack of goals. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

Wout Weghorst at Manchester United: when his loan from Burnley expires in the close season, should he stay or should he go? For the 30-year-old’s naysayers there is zero debate. They characterise him as the 6ft 6in one-paced target man of stereotype, continually hoping for any given contest to slow down. That Weghorst is a kind of Dutch Peter Crouch, except with fewer goals, as he has managed two in 18 United appearances.

A lack of fleet-footedness is the prime reason Weghorst is cast as having no long-term future under Erik ten Hag, as this weakness runs counter to the manager’s blueprint, which is all about speed, The ball should be recycled quickly, with the midfield flooding forward fast and Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Jadon Sancho and Antony rushing in from the flanks. In Anthony Martial’s absence through injury, Weghorst was a stopgap only, the goal-sniffer who would finish the openings created by this attacking squadron.