Man Utd rue Jhon Duran ERROR amid Zirkzee struggles

Cameron Smith

• 15 Sept 2024 16:15 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United made contact with Jhon Duran during his time with Chicago Fire and they reportedly had the chance to sign him for less than €12 million before his move to Aston Villa.

Duran was linked with a host of Premier League clubs this summer, with Chelsea and West Ham United both close to purchasing the Colombian amid his desire to leave Aston Villa.

The 20-year-old was eager to depart Villa Park after spending the 2023-24 campaign playing second fiddle to Ollie Watkins, but he was unable to leave Unai Emery’s side.

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However, while Duran is yet to start a Premier League game this season, the Colombian already has three goals in 2024-25, including a sublime winner against Everton on Saturday evening.

Erling Haaland is the only player with more English top flight goals than Duran so far this campaign, while the Aston Villa star has the second-best minutes per goal ratio (86.4) in Premier League history - of any player to have scored at least five goals in the competition.

Before his eventual move to Villa Park, Duran was heavily linked with Man Utd and the Red Devils even contacted the player’s representatives in November 2022, as per Alan Nixon (via mufcMPB on X).

READ MORE: Man Utd open talks with fourth most expensive player in history

Man Utd were reportedly told that Duran would cost around €11.8m, but they were unable to finalise a deal and he joined Aston Villa for €16.6m in January 2023.

Joshua Zirkzee’s woes

While Man Utd weren’t able to sign Duran during his time in the MLS, they completed a deal for Joshua Zirkzee during the most recent summer transfer window.

The Netherlands international arrived from Bologna for €42.5m in July and although he netted the winner against Fulham on his Man Utd, he has struggled since.

Zirkzee stopped Alejandro Garnacho scoring versus Brighton & Hove Albion due to being in an offside position, and his fortunes have worsened since then.

The Dutchman has missed four big chances in his past two Man Utd appearances, scoring zero goals from an xG of 2.02.

It is very early days and Zirkzee still has time to come good at Old Trafford, but the Red Devils need a reliable goalscorer if they want to challenge for the Premier League title, and Duran may well have been that player.