Ruud

Originally Posted by ziggyman17

when Andy Cole signed for us his game was all about scoring goals.. a couple of seasons later and he turned into an all round striker, a million miles away from the player we signed from newcastle, hopefully Hernandez will develop like Cole..

I think Hernandez will improve a la Cole, he's improved visibly during this season alone. Ruud lacked the natural athleticism and ability of a top footballer and was a product of hard work and an eye/brain for a goal scoring chance, he always struck me as awkward as £#%&! in his movement and running and his touch anywhere outside the 18 yard box ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous, and was ridiculous more often than not.

As for Ruud being our best every striker, pfft. Ronaldo shit all over him starting as a winger ffs.

I was a huge Saha fan. Ruud might get you 30-40 goals, but the team would only get 50-60. Take Ruud out and stick Saha in, and he might only get 15-20, but the team were getting 70-80. Some times a player change like that can make the team greater than the sum of it's parts.

The one time Saha got a good run in the team we got that great start in the league and finally started winning away in Europe.

Originally Posted by andyroo

The one time Saha got a good run in the team we got that great start in the league and finally started winning away in Europe.

If only he had been stronger (both physically and mentally)

Originally Posted by dunk

I think Hernandez will improve a la Cole, he's improved visibly during this season alone. Ruud lacked the natural athleticism and ability of a top footballer and was a product of hard work and an eye/brain for a goal scoring chance, he always struck me as awkward as £#%&! in his movement and running and his touch anywhere outside the 18 yard box ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous, and was ridiculous more often than not.

As for Ruud being our best every striker, pfft. Ronaldo shit all over him starting as a winger ffs.

I was a huge Saha fan. Ruud might get you 30-40 goals, but the team would only get 50-60. Take Ruud out and stick Saha in, and he might only get 15-20, but the team were getting 70-80. Some times a player change like that can make the team greater than the sum of it's parts.

he was a natural finisher though.

ruud was a tremendous athlete in his first seasons at united, the injuries took their toll on him, sadly. at the beginning he had everything you could wish for, then the pace and sharpness left him and we were right to let him go in the end.

hernandez's game has developed tremendously in the short time he's been here and is clearly a very determined, motivated and intelligent player with both feet firmly on the ground, i see no reason to doubt his long-term success. fabulous player, a bargain to match the likes of evra, vidic, park and the twins.

Originally Posted by dunk

he always struck me as awkward as £#%&! in his movement and running and his touch anywhere outside the 18 yard box ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous, and was ridiculous more often than not.

Think you're being very harsh on him there Dunk.

He was deceptively quick in his prime. His solo-runs against Fulham at Old Trafford and Arsenal at Highbury are just two stand-out examples of him completely burning defenders.

His touch anywhere inside the area was unreal. He'd have three defenders around him and he could pull a ball out of the air on his chest or with his foot, and with a rapid swivel it would be in the back of the net. His finishing was on another level. Amazing balance and strength as well.

Outside the area didn't really matter as it wasn't his territory. We'd have Beckham throwing balls into the penalty area on a sixpence and Ruud sticking them away for fun.

Hernandez is very similar to him in that he likes to play on the last man and get into the box as much as possible. The big difference between them is age though. We were only going to get a few good seasons out of Ruud after that horror injury as he came to us in his prime as well, aged 25/26.

Pea is younger and still has a few years before he hits his prime and during that time I reckon he'll improve his all round game to become a more well-rounded forward. The improvements he's made this season alone have been very impressive.