Had you posed this questions two years ago, you would have been laughed at, your opinion discredited and never have been allowed to discuss football again.
However, now in 2015 it is a very serious and important question. It is a question that could bring an end to one of the greatest strikers of the modern game’s career but the beginning of another.
You have to say history is definitely on Radamel Falcao’s side. This is a man that scored 41 goals in 51 appearances for Porto before going on to score 52 goals in 68 appearances for Atletico Madrid. In comparison, Danny Welbeck scored a mere 20 goals in 90 appearances for Manchester United, and has never been at another club long enough to gain a successful goalscoring record. When it comes to personal awards, Falcao is ahead there too. The Colombian managed to come fifth in the 2012 Ballon D’Or award and was in 2012 FIFPro Team of the Year, whereas Welbeck, surprisingly, has never been nominated any international awards and has just once won an individual award, The Jimmy Murphy Young Player Of The Year, throughout his professional career.
However, recent form tells a very different story. Neither player can claim to have set the Premier League alight with their goalscoring form, both strikers have scored a measly four for the season so far and with the season drawing to close it is hard to see either of the two significantly adding to their tally. Falcao currently just edges the battle for assists, having set up four goals this season compared to Welbeck’s three. The current Red Devil has also been more accurate this season, having a shot accuracy of 55% compared to the 53% achieved by Welbeck. For once, the South American footballer would seem to have less technical ability than the English footballer with Welbeck achieving 40 successful dribbles in 27 appearances, compared to Falcao’s pitiful 13 dribbles in 25 appearances.
In truth, this question cannot be solved by stats alone, as you have to bear in mind on one side there is a world renowned striker who used to be one of the most prolific striker in the world, against a young England international who was discarded after being told he was no longer good enough for Manchester United. However, I don’t feel you can justify Falcao’s absurd wage just for that extra assist.
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