Celebrated in song but struggling to make a meaningful impact on the pitch, Fred is proving an enigma at Manchester United. Adam Bate examines the player’s problems so far and his prospects of turning his career around under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer…
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is at the wheel but where is he taking Fred? The £52m signing from Shakhtar Donetsk was Manchester United’s headline buy of the summer but he now finds himself on the fringes at Old Trafford. Needless to say that supporters have not seen the best of the Brazilian but why is that and what could he yet bring to this United team?
The past week should have been his big chance but it is not clear that it was an opportunity seized. During the recent injury crisis, Solskjaer turned to Scott McTominay and then Andreas Pereira for the game against Liverpool, and while Fred did get his first Premier League start of the year at Crystal Palace, he was back on the bench against Southampton.
At least he provided the assist for Romelu Lukaku’s winner against Saints, perhaps his first significant contribution since scoring the opening goal against Wolves in September. Even in that match, a 1-1 draw at home, Fred was the first man withdrawn as Jose Mourinho was left to lament the attitude of his players, and in particular their lack of intensity.
Asked afterwards whether Fred had taken another important step towards adjusting to the Premier League, Mourinho said: “When the team has the ball, of course he has quality.” But it was different without the ball and Fred failed to start any of the next six games. After 53 minutes against Huddersfield on Boxing Day, Solskjaer seemed to reach similar conclusions.
All of which is a little disappointing given that this appeared to be an encouraging signing. It was a move away from the superstar acquisitions that had come to characterise the club’s approach to the transfer market. United scouts attended Shakhtar games for many months. Fred had the hallmarks of a signing of substance to help transform the team.
Whether Fred will face a similar fate remains to be seen. He has not been frozen out. There is still time to make an impact. But as it stands, rather than playing for Solskjaer’s side, his biggest contribution has been lending his name to a line in the song celebrating it. Fred has work to do if he is to become more than a curious footnote in the story of this new United.