Manchester United have, for the most part, always had some incredible strikers in their squad.
Joshua Zirkzee has been struggling this season, while Rasmus Hojlund has been poor this season too, but, over the past three decades or so United have always had brilliant number nines.
From Robin van Persie and Dimitar Berbatov to Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke, United have always had some amazing strikers.
Speaking to TNT Sports, Rio Ferdinand has been tasked with ranking five of the greatest players in Manchester United’s history, and he’s made an interesting claim about two great Manchester United strikers.
Rio Ferdinand ranks Eric Cantona above Wayne Rooney
Ferdinand was ranking five all-time greats from Manchester United.
The pundit was happy with his ranking at the end, and, interestingly, he put Eric Cantona ahead of Manchester United here.
Cantona was an amazing player for Manchester United, and he made a huge impact at Old Trafford.
Indeed, while Cantona didn’t quite score as many goals as Rooney, he joined at a time when United needed a talisman, and he was a difference-maker in big moments as the Alex Ferguson era got up and running in terms of success.
Eric Cantona compared to Wayne Rooney
Cantona and Rooney are two very interesting case studies in terms of great strikers.
Indeed, neither player ever won a Golden Boot award in the Premier League, but both men were so incredibly talented and made huge impacts for Manchester United.
The stats don’t tell the entire story of how good these two players were, but in some ways, the numbers suggest Cantona was the better player for United.
| Wayne Rooney | ||
| 185 | Games | 559 |
| 82 | Goals | 253 |
| 63 | Assists | 141 |
| 0.44 | Goals per game | 0.45 |
| 0.34 | Assists per game | 0.25 |
| 9 | Trophies won | 16 |
Yes, Rooney scored more goals, but he’s almost level with Cantona in terms of goals per game.
Rooney’s trophy haul is also more impressive, but, Rooney did spend a lot longer at Old Trafford.
Rooney is an all-time United great, as is Cantona, and it’s a bit of a shame that we never got to see these two play together at Old Trafford.
At just £1m, Eric Cantona is undoubtedly one of the best signings in United’s history.
