It’s fair to say some of Manchester United’s signings this season were gambles.
Would Bastian Schweinsteiger’s body hold up to the rigours of the Premier League? Could Matteo Darmian adjust to a new competition immediately? Was Anthony Martial real, or just a fictional character dreamt up in gossip columns?
But there was meant to be no doubt over Morgan Schneiderlin.
The Frenchman has years of Premier League experience and fills a gap in the United midfield that has existed ever since Sir Alex Ferguson decided Darron Gibson was a better option than Paul Pogba.
Schneiderlin has been good, granted, and the club have a superior record when he is in the team.
But while he’s done a decent job, he’s yet to reach the heights of his final season at Southampton, as this infographic from fantasy football game Oulala shows.
While the 26-year-old has shown defensive solidity in his 16 games this season, it’s not quite at last year’s levels.
He’s won fewer tackles, while his tackle success rate is lower than it was under Ronald Koeman.
Schneiderlin has lost some of his attacking edge too, with just one goal (against Everton) and not a single assist since moving north. Last year he found the net four times, with three arriving in the opening month of the campaign.
Still, he’s got more than a dozen games to make up ground, and United fans probably have fewer complaints about him than about some other squad members.
