Ian Wright slams Erik ten Hag signing who has little hope of a Man Utd career

Ian Wright has expressed his doubts about Joshua Zirkzee’s future at Manchester United under new head coach Ruben Amorim, stating that the striker simply isn’t up to scratch.

Despite being signed from Bologna for a hefty £36million in the summer, 23-year-old Zirkzee has only managed to net one goal in 14 games for the Red Devils and has generally failed to impress on the pitch.

It was revealed earlier this week that Zirkzee, who reportedly arrived at the club overweight, wasn’t actually a player Erik ten Hag wanted to sign but was instead identified by the club’s new football hierarchy.

The Dutchman has been playing second fiddle to Rasmus Hojlund since the Danish striker returned from injury, and Wright believes his chances of getting more game time won’t be improved by the arrival of Amorim, who is set to officially take over from Ten Hag next week.

Speaking on Wrighty’s House, the ex-Arsenal star said: “Do you know something? When I look at the strikers at Manchester United, I look at [Rasmus] Hojlund and Zirkzee.

“Going forward, as a United player to take the club to the level they need to be – top-four, Champions League, title challengers – I can’t see in any formation Zirkzee making it from what I’ve seen so far.”

Wright has cast a critical eye on United’s attacking options and didn’t pull any punches when assessing Zirkzee’s potential impact at Old Trafford. He stated: “I can see it with Hojlund, he looks like a future player with better players around him.

“He gives me the impression that if he gets in and around the box and he gets chances, he can go hot. I don’t see the same with Zirkzee. I look at him and his movement, I don’t see anything in his game that makes me think, ‘Okay, there he is, I see what he can do’.”

Wright sees the quality in Hojlund and others, believing they are capable of stepping up to a higher level but expresses sympathy for Zirkzee.

Despite acknowledging Hojlund’s potential, Wright maintains that the Red Devils are still short of a top-class number nine. “United still need a striker.

Whether they turn Marcus [Rashford] into that or they get a top striker in, they need one, to go alongside Hojlund and maybe for Hojlund to be the back-up.”

Analysing the chances of new players under a possible future manager, Wright remarked: “I’m trying to think of Ruben Amorim coming in and who he’s going to play.

“Zirkzee will need to go through some massive transformation to play in the team ahead of other players. He’s definitely not a natural goalscorer. I’m still waiting to see it from him.”