Marko Arnautovic continues to silence Man Utd haters
Carlo Garganese
- Updated: 11 Sept 2022 18:41 BST
- 4 min read
One of the shock stories of the summer transfer window was Manchester United’s move to sign Marko Arnautovic.
United were searching for a new number nine as they prepared for the potential exit of Cristiano Ronaldo, who had issued a transfer request.
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At the start of August, United submitted a bid of €8 million for the 33-year-old Austrian, which was immediately rejected by Bologna.
Arnautovic and his entourage had made it clear that they wanted to make the move but Bologna insisted publicly that they were not prepared to sell.
Nevertheless, Man Utd were expected to increase their offer for the striker as personally requested by manager Erik ten Hag, who worked with Arnautovic while at Twente.
However, a fan campaign demanding that Man Utd do not sign Arnautovic proved to be successful.
Fans complained that Arnautovic used an anti-Albanian slur at Euro 2020 during Austria’s game against North Macedonia, for which he received a one-match ban from UEFA.
There were also unproven allegations against Arnautovic racially abusing an opponent while at Twente in 2009, which the player himself denied in a social media post and have never been substantiated.
The Athletic reported that a number of Man Utd fans even emailed United and chief executive Richard Arnold directly imploring the club not to sign Arnautovic.
In addition to these complaints, the vast majority of Man Utd fans – as well as opposition supporters – openly mocked the club for trying to sign Arnautovic.
The consensus was that United should not be trying to sign a former West Ham veteran who was plying his trade for a mid-table Serie A side – and someone who was playing in China just over a year ago.
Death. Taxes. Arnautovic scoring.
The trident of certainty 🦁⚽️#WeAreOne #BolognaFiorentina pic.twitter.com/HQh3xCS8mZ— Bologna FC 1909 (@BolognaFC1909en) September 11, 2022
Arnautovic on fire this season
However, Arnautovic has silenced the critics so far this season – at least from a sporting point of view.
He has scored six goals in his first six games for a struggling Bologna side who sacked their manager Sinisa Mihajlovic earlier this week.
Arnautovic has single-handedly kept them out of the relegation zone.
This tally of goals makes him the top-scorer in Serie A, and he was at his brilliant best on Sunday afternoon as he struck the winner in a 2-1 victory over Fiorentina.
This came after he scored twice a week ago in the 2-2 draw at Spezia.
Arnautovic had scored as many goals himself as Man Utd's entire attack this season, and only two less than United's entire squad.
United began life under new manager Erik ten Hag abysmally with a 2-1 home loss to Brighton and 4-0 thumping at Brentford. They have recovered since with four league victories in a row, but doubts remain over their number nine position.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been demoted to the bench, while Ten Hag lacks any other natural number nine. This is likely to be an issue over the course of the season and a problem Arnautovic could have helped with.
