Former Manchester United striker Andy Cole has backed Edinson Cavani to emulate the impact made by Zlatan Ibrahimovic at Old Trafford.
Uruguayan veteran Cavani, 33, is poised to complete a free transfer to United on deadline day following his release by PSG earlier this summer.
Ibrahimovic made the same move in 2016 aged 34 and proved to be a big hit, scoring 29 goals in 53 appearances over a 20-month spell at the club.
The Swedish legend - a former teammate of Cavani's - also helped United win two major trophies, most notably scoring twice - including the winner - in the 2017 EFL Cup final.
Speaking of Cavani, Cole told talkSPORT : "He’s 33, he’s won trophies, big trophies, he’ll go there and I think he’ll really look forward to playing for Manchester United.
“Hopefully he’ll work out like a Zlatan. Zlatan was unbelievable, not just around the place but as a person. I spent a bit of time with him, what a funny guy he is. He always believes in himself but also tries to bring the rest of the team on as well.
“If you look at Cavani’s record, he’s an individual who will get the little tap-ins, he can pick the ball up and take on a couple of players and put it in the top bin. He has those qualities.
“If you watch him over his career, wherever he has gone – I watched him numerous times at PSG – some of the goals he gets are really good quality striker goals, and that’s what Manchester United need."
United have made a late swoop for Cavani after holding initial talks with the forward earlier this summer.
Moves to Atletico Madrid and Benfica failed to materialise, leaving him on the market as deadline day approached.
While Cavani was almost certainly not a priority for United, Cole believes it is a shrewd signing which will reap rewards for his old club.
Will Cavani be a good signing for United? Have your say below.
“Yeah, we can say they need a centre-half, they need a left-back, a midfielder, the list could be endless, but now they’ve got a proven goalscorer who you know can get goals in the Premier League," he added.
"[Anthony] Martial is still a baby, he’s still learning his job. We all know how good a player he is, but on the flip side of that he can be a little bit inconsistent. A lot of Man United fans want to see him do it week in, week out.
“Someone like Cavani coming in, we know what we’re going to get – proven goalscorer, he works extremely hard, he’ll score all types of goals. Man United love an individual who can score goals.”
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