Manchester United’s £42.5 million striker aims to stay in the Premier League! He has become Amorim’s third choice and is unwilling to return to Serie A.

Manchester United invested more than £200 million on forwards in the summer, bringing in Cunha, Mbemba, and Sheshko consecutively. This situation left former striker Hojlund no choice but to agree to a loan deal with Napoli. Another striker, Zirkzee, also faces a tough time with limited appearances, as Amorim could choose Cunha to fill the striker role even if changes are made.

Because Amorim employs a 3-4-3 formation, there are only three attacking positions available. Many Manchester United fans still hope to see Zirkzee play as a number 10, but unfortunately, competition for that spot is fierce. Even captain Bruno Fernandes has had to drop back into midfield, leaving Zirkzee with very few chances.

Amorim is quite ruthless with players he doesn’t want. Currently, Zirkzee can only serve as a substitute, but his situation may worsen in the future. Data shows that the 24-year-old Zirkzee has played just 74 minutes in the Premier League so far, without a single start. Most of his playing time (59 minutes) came in the match against Burnley when Cunha left injured after half an hour. In the 2-0 win over Sunderland, Zirkzee wasn’t even included on the bench.

Rumors suggest Amorim may bring in a new striker next year, with Vlahovic, whose contract with Juventus is expiring, considered a free transfer target. Serie A clubs like Juventus, AC Milan, and Como have shown interest in Zirkzee, who scored 14 goals in 58 games for Bologna, but English media report that the Dutch striker prefers to remain in the Premier League.

Zirkzee’s departure from Manchester United is seen as only a matter of time, and he might follow in Ganago’s footsteps by rejecting offers from other European leagues to move to another Premier League club. Reports say Zirkzee firmly believes he has the qualities to succeed in English football but will carefully weigh his next steps.

If Zirkzee stays at Manchester United, he will likely only get playing time during “garbage time.” Since the club isn’t competing in Europe this season and was knocked out early in the League Cup, only the Premier League remains, with the FA Cup starting in January. With basically one game per week, Amorim has little reason to rotate the squad.

In the striker role at Manchester United, Zirkzee is behind Sheshko and Cunha; in the number 10 battle, the team has many options including Mbemba, Cunha, Mason Mount, Amad Diallo, and Bruno Fernandes. Transfer expert Peter O’Rourke asserts that if Zirkzee’s situation does not improve in the coming weeks, he may request to leave Manchester United in January.

“If he can’t get regular playing time under Amorim, he might consider leaving, especially with the World Cup approaching next summer. Having played less than the equivalent of one full Premier League match, he’s unhappy with the situation, but clearly Amorim spent a lot of money this summer to bring in Cunha, Mbemba, and Sheshko.”

TEAMtalk reports that Everton and West Ham are potential destinations for Zirkzee, and both have asked Manchester United to notify them first if the player is put up for sale. West Ham has been interested since Moyes’ tenure and may act in January to boost their chances of avoiding relegation; Everton, Moyes’ current team, started the season well, recently ending Crystal Palace’s unbeaten run and sitting eighth in the Premier League.

English media say Zirkzee has begun considering his options and has instructed his agents to explore potential moves before January, with both loan and permanent transfers possible. The Dutchman clearly sees that several forwards who left Manchester United, such as Rashford and Hojlund, have performed excellently once they became regular starters, scoring goals last weekend. Therefore, if he moves, he will demand to join a club where he can be guaranteed a starting role.