Former Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov believes Wout Weghorst has the capability to bring the best out of his teammates at Old Trafford.
The Netherlands international, who started in midfield against Barcelona on Thursday evening, joined United on loan for the remainder of the season from Championship table-toppers Burnley last month. He was, at the time of United registering their interest, on loan at Turkish giants Besiktas, where he was scheduled to stay until the end of the season.
United were desperate to bring in a striker in January and considered Weghorst as a suitable stop-gap option until the end of the season, with a view to recruiting a permanent addition in the summer. The club is set to prioritise the signing of an elite-level striker ahead of next season and are interested in both Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur and Napoli ace Victor Osimhen.
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Weghorst has instantly become a key fixture in Erik ten Hag's plans at Old Trafford, making nine appearances in all competitions so far. However, he has scored just one goal, meaning concerns have been raised about whether or not he has the ability to score goals at this level.
Despite that justified concern, Berbatov, who spent four years at United, believes Ten Hag recruited the former Wolfsburg man for more than just his abilities as a goalscorer, pointing to his all-round game and ability to bring others into play.
"To be honest, I personally don't believe Weghorst was signed for his goalscoring ability," Berbatov told Betfred. "He's not scoring regularly but he's playing regularly and that indicates that Erik ten Hag has faith in him, that he trusts him and believes he has additional qualities that he can bring to the team, such as his aerial ability and his ability to play with his back to goal.
"You can see him going back to defend at times because he wants to help the team as much as he can. His work rate is something that Ten Hag clearly appreciates too.
"Managers can sometimes surprise people and see qualities in a striker that other people wouldn't appreciate as much because most people associate strikers with goals. Wout isn't going to score as many goals as people expect but he's going to contribute in other ways and the other players around him are going to shine.
"Some people may not believe that it makes sense but to me it makes perfect sense because nowadays strikers need to bring a lot of different qualities to the table, rather than just goalscoring. Don't get me wrong, goals are still the main quality that a striker should bring, but it all depends on who your manager is and what they want from you."
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