Manchester United need to find a 20-goal-a-season striker from somewhere – and Paulo Dybala is personal terms away from becoming the latest to try to fill that void.
Not since Robin van Persie has a United player scored 20 or more Premier League goals in a campaign.
That drought has coincided with the club’s longest run without the title since Sir Alex Ferguson’s first in 1993 – six years and counting.
Ferguson was obsessed with goal-scorers.
He was the first manager of the modern era to deploy four top grade strikers in his squad when Dwight Yorke, Andy Cole, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer fired United to the Treble in 1999.
Even more impressive than the forwards he did sign, are the ones he missed out on.
Alan Shearer, Gabriel Batistuta, Patrick Kluivert and Ronaldinho to name a few.
Now Solskjaer, who defers to so many of Ferguson’s principles, is trying to reshape a United attack that scored a full 30 goals fewer than champions Manchester City in the league last season.
A wretched end to the campaign saw them score two goals in a match on just two occasions in their final 12 fixtures.
In their friendly against Kristiansund on Tuesday, which required an injury time Juan Mata penalty to secure a fifth straight pre-season victory, their lack of cutting edge was emphasised after 30 attempts on goal.
Romelu Lukaku does not fit into Solskjaer’s plans – but his goals will need to be replaced.
He scored 42 in all competitions in his two years at Old Trafford and Solskjaer, himself, has described the Belgium international as the deadliest finisher in training.
Anthony Martial, who looks set to start the season as Man Utd’s lone striker, is also considered among the most clinical at the club, but lacks the hunger of Lukaku to score all types of goals.
Solskjaer is desperate to instil that same desire into Marcus Rashford, who has been at pains to distance himself from the No9 role this summer.
“It's about being able to adapt and play in different positions and to be the ultimate forward,” he said this week. And while Solskjaer wants a fluid attack, more in-keeping with the systems deployed by City and Liverpool – the need for someone to put the ball in the back of the net on a consistent basis is paramount.
“I’ve said before that we need to be more clinical,” said the Norwegian after Kristiansund. “That’s where you win games.
“It’s not a concern but it’s something we’re going to have to improve on.”
So is Dybala the answer?
He certainly wasn’t United’s first choice.
That was Jadon Sancho, who fits perfectly with Solskjaer’s intention to recruit the best young domestic talent.
But Borussia Dortmund’s refusal to even countenance the sale of the England international this summer forced United to consider alternative options.
They were among a host of Europe’s leading clubs to express interest in Nicolas Pepe, but that had cooled by time Arsenal made their move for the Lille forward.
Lyon’s Moussa Dembele was another on Solskjaer’s radar.
United were aware of Dybala’s availability all summer and it wasn’t until a swap deal was proposed involving Lukaku that their interest intensified.
While Lukaku’s move to Juventus is not believed to be fundamental to signing Dybala – it represents a very convenient piece of business, given United’s struggles to find a suitor willing to meet their £80m valuation of the Belgian.
Talks are ongoing with Inter Milan, who have failed to offer more than £54m for manager Antonio Conte’s top target, but given this late stage of the window, a swap would be welcome to Ed Woodward and chief negotiator Matt Judge.
Exactly how Solskjaer plans to deploy the versatile Dybala remains to be seen.
His wicked left foot makes him an ideal option to play on the right of a three behind the lone striker.
That has long-been a problem position for United, with Rashford, Martial, Jesse Lingard and Mata all failing to fulfil the role effectively.
Alternatively, Dybala could play as a No10, which has been earmarked for Lingard, lead the line or operate on the left.
Solskjaer wants a fluid forward line, full of pace, with players comfortable popping up in any position across the front to stretch and confuse defences.
That has been evident in pre-season with both Rashford and Martial operating at the point of attack.
Daniel James (below) has played left and right, while Mason Greenwood’s perfect balance means he can hurt defences no matter where he’s deployed.
As it stands, the 17-year-old is the leading contender to start on the right against Chelsea in United’s opening game of the season – but that would be a bold call from Solskjaer, whose options would change considerably with Dybala in his squad.
The onus will not be on the Argentine to provide the goals lost by Lukaku’s departure.
Rashford and Martial are both expected to significantly increase their output.
Unlike Rashford, Martial does consider himself a No9.
His management team even went to the trouble of registering internet domain names which included the terms Martial and the number nine when he arrived at Old Trafford.
In his first season he scored 17 goals before seeing his numbers dwindle when pushed to the fringes by Jose Mourinho.
The hope is that when entrusted with a central striking role, the France international will establish himself as a goal-scorer of the highest calibre.
It would be no surprise to see Solskjaer hand him the No9 shirt, which was taken from him by Mourinho, as a show of faith.
As for Dybala, his statistics are remarkably similar to Lukaku’s over the past two seasons – scoring 27 league goals, compared to 28 – but having played three games fewer (63/66).
Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival in Turin can be considered a major factor in the 25-year-old’s disappointing campaign last term, which saw him score five goals in Serie A. But Solskjaer will hope he can rediscover his finest form of two years ago when hitting 22 league goals and 26 in all competitions.
That is precisely the type of goal power he is desperate to add to his attack.
