Radamel Falcao says that he would love to stay at Manchester United, but admits that a permanent move to Old Trafford will depend on how much he plays from now until the end of the season.
United made a big splash by signing the Colombian striker from Monaco in deadline day, but Falcao was obviously not fully recovered from his knee surgery early in the year and as a result he has struggled to find form and has scored just once in 11 appearances.
United have an option to by the striker for £43.5m and the former Porto striker knows that his chances of remaining at Old Trafford depend on the amount of playing time he gets for the remainder of the campaign, though.
“I am very happy in this city, in this club and I am enjoying it here,” he told Press Association Sport. “I really want to stay. From my point of view, I’d like to carry on but obviously I have to analyse the situation, see if I play more and see what decision the board takes.”
Falcao, who cost Monaco £52m when they signed him from Atletico Madrid 18 months ago, admits he would prefer to play more, but is willing to be patient.
“Every footballer wants to play, no-one is happy when they are not playing, when they are on the bench, but whenever I am given the opportunity, whether it be for five, 10, 20 or 90 minutes, I have to give my best,” he said. “I feel ready for the moment that the team needs me. Whenever I have the opportunity to come on I try to do my best for the coach and I try to help the team.”
When asked whether he had spoken to manager Louis van Gaal about his lack of playing time, Falcao said:
“We talk a lot. He has a philosophy that I respect.
“I have had an injury, and I have had to wait for the opportunity to play. I am not playing many minutes at the moment, but I am sure that there will more opportunities to play.”
Falcao hopes he will soon reach peak fitness and start repaying the club for the money they have invested in him.
“I’m almost at 100 per cent now, let’s see wait and see what the decision of the coach is, when he wants to use me more,” said Falcao, who is one of the top earners at the club.
The challenge for Falcao is that he faces a lot of competition to get into the United line-up as Robin van Persie has scored four goals in his last four games and Wayne Rooney is starting to show good form, while Van Gaal has shown a lot of faith in 19-year-old forward James Wilson.
“We have a group of strikers who are very good and that’s good for everyone,” he said. “That means there is always a level of competition between us, healthy competition, and obviously I am very happy with how the team is doing.”
The holiday fixtures will be a key part of the season for Falcao as United play four league games and an FA Cup in a 14 day period. The Columbian should start at least one of those games and he will be desperate to get his name on the scoresheet a couple of times.
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