Edinson Cavani Compared To Former Manchester United Striker Ahead Of Old Trafford Move

Manchester United legend Andy Cole has insisted that Edinson Cavani's arrival at Old Trafford could bring the same impact as Zlatan Ibrahimovic did.

Cavani, 33, has been a free agent since June after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain came to an end.

The Uruguayan striker was linked with Benfica and Atletico Madrid in recent weeks, but he is now expected to complete a move to United before the window shuts today.

United have received some backlash over their deal for Cavani due to the wage demands and the Uruguay international's age.

However, Cole hasn't ruled out the possibility that Cavani could replicate the impact of Ibrahimovic and praised the United target for his proven goalscoring record.

The 48-year-old former striker told talkSPORT: "He's 33, he's won trophies, big trophies, he'll go there and I think he'll really look forward to playing for Manchester United.

"Hopefully, he'll work out like a Zlatan. Zlatan was unbelievable, not just around the place but as a person.

"I spent a bit of time with him, what a funny guy he is. He always believes in himself but also tries to bring the rest of the team on as well.

"If you look at Cavani's record, he's an individual who will get the little tap-ins, he can pick the ball up and take on a couple of players and put it in the top bin. He has those qualities.

"If you watch him over his career, wherever he has gone -- I watched him numerous times at PSG -- some of the goals he gets are really good quality striker goals, and that's what Manchester United need.

"Yeah, we can say they need a centre-half, they need a left-back, a midfielder, the list could be endless, but now they've got a proven goalscorer who you know can get goals in the Premier League.

"[Anthony] Martial is still a baby, he's still learning his job. We all know how good a player he is, but on the flip side of that, he can be a little bit inconsistent. A lot of Man United fans want to see him do it week in, week out.

"Someone like Cavani coming in, we know what we're going to get -- proven goalscorer, he works extremely hard, he'll score all types of goals. Man United love an individual who can score goals."

Ibrahimovic was brought to United in 2016 by Jose Mourinho and won the Europa League trophy and League Cup in his debut season.

The 39-year-old Swedish striker, who played with Cavani at PSG, admitted that he made his harshest critics "eat their own words" after his impact at United.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Football News, Football, Manchester United, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, red devils, Premier League, Edinson Cavani

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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