Andre Silva is not a signing Manchester United need to make
It's clear for all to see when watching Manchester United this season that they are in desperate need of a new striker to lead their attacking line.
Edinson Cavani is 34 years old with a contract that expires this summer, although United have the option to extend it by a year, while Anthony Martial has seemingly taken a year off from scoring goals.
That has seen the Red Devils linked with an abundance of attacking players, including Portuguese international Andre Silva. The Eintracht Frankfurt striker is currently only behind Robert Lewandowski in the race for the Kicker-Torjägerkanone, having scored 18 goals in 20 games so far this season.
Reports suggest that the 25-year-old could be available for around €30m and with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer keen to bolster his squad in multiple positions this summer, a cheaper option could help the club to do that.
With that said though, Silva would be a signing that stinks of a stop-gap.
Despite his excellent form over the last 18 months, his career hasn't been all bright lights and butterflies. After shining at Porto, a big money move to AC Milan was expected to be the catalyst for a career that at one point had him touted as Portugal's answer to goals post-Ronaldo.
After just ten goals in 41 games for the club, with only two in Serie A, he was allowed to leave San Siro and joined Sevilla on loan for a year.
It was hoped that in La Liga he would able to get back on track, but he scored 11 goals in 40 games for the Spanish side before the club opted against turning his transfer permanent. Then came the move to Frankfurt, where he has managed to get back on track.
A mobile target man, Silva has a fantastic physique and uses his body and strength well when battling opposition defenders. He has decent pace, is a good finisher with both feet inside the box and can compete aerially too. A total package, so the signing makes sense right? Wrong.
His spells as the number one striker at a club not named Porto have seen him struggle in the past. When you compare his attributes to those already at United, they probably don't match up in the same way as they do when you look at them on their own.
He's not a better finisher than Martial, Cavani or even Mason Greenwood, his movement isn't any sharper, he's not as quick and generally isn't a better footballer than any of them. While the current version of Martial is definitely not up to the standard, we've seen in the past that he is more than capable of more than what he is showing right now.
Unless the signing is a significant upgrade on current options, there isn't much point making it. United need a top level striker, not someone who is a new name but can play to the same level of the current options.
If a top striker like Erling Haaland is unattainable this season, most United fans would much rather see Cavani's deal extended for a year with the hope that Martial can reach his previous level or that Greenwood can step up to the plate in his favoured central striker role.
Silva is a good striker who is having a fine career in Europe, but he's at the right level right now. The Bundesliga is a breeding ground for great goal records for strikers, so let Silva stay there and impress.
If it isn't a striker from the top drawer, the United should pass. Silva included.