With the upcoming season being Anderson’s fifth, Anderson’s still clinging on to his handful of impressive performances in his first season in order to prove his worth. Four full years have passed and the first season aside, seldom have we seen Anderson represent his price tag of around 20 million pounds. Time after time he’s had the odd impressive performance, but he’s still yet to prove to be the consistent performer that he’s required to be. His performances alongside Tom Cleverley at the start of last season is a perfect example; he was excellent when with Cleverley, but after losing that partnership with him he simply wasn’t good enough. Unfortunately for him, being able to perform with just one partner isn’t good enough.
On the slightly overweight side when we bought him, the excessive weight has failed to shift and, if anything, more has been added. For a Premier League midfielder in an attack-minded team that’s not good enough – anybody not fully fit struggles to meet the demands of the Premier League, even more so at United. It’s all getting a bit tiring. Of course injuries have played a part in his relative failure, but if reports are to be believed then his weight has also played its part in his recovery from them. Sitting on the sidelines for the majority of last season he was apparently told to “get fit,” something I’m not so sure has happened. Even with his new Mohawk haircut, it appears the lifestyle changes haven’t changed over the years.
From a personal point of view, despite being reasonably encouraged by Anderson at the start of his United career, it’s certainly becoming hard to believe he’ll become a worthwhile investment. Last season was important for him, and even though I accept he did suffer from injuries, he simply didn’t do enough. With the midfield needing some serious bulking up and investment, it makes sense to keep him for one more year, even if it’s just for backup. Last summer I suspected that we may have seen the end of Anderson at United, and when he stayed it was certainly a case of “this year he has to prove himself.” Having failed to do that last year, if he’s even fortunate enough to be given another chance, can he prove himself next year? I’m not so sure. Anderson’s had plenty of chances in the past that he hasn’t taken – I don’t see why this season should be any different.
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