Manchester United fans have praised Wout Weghorst's movement in the build-up to Bruno Fernandes ' goal against Crystal Palace on Wednesday evening.
Weghorst, 30, started the 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park to make his debut for United after recently joining the club from Burnley on loan. Erik ten Hag's side took the lead just before half-time and were on the verge of winning before Michael Olise's last-minute free kick snatched a Premier League point for the hosts.
Weghorst has replaced Cristiano Ronaldo in the squad after he left Old Trafford by mutual consent in November, though the Netherlands international's move to United has been questioned due to his modest CV.
The former AZ and Wolfsburg forward scored just two Premier League goals during a six-month spell at relegated Burnley last season and spent the first half of this campaign at Besiktas in Turkey. Yet Weghorst's involvement in Fernandes' strike has given fans a reason to be optimistic.
The move for the goal started with Marcus Rashford in possession. The Englishman then fed Christian Eriksen down the left, while Weghorst made a run towards the near post. The Dutchman's movement forced three Palace defenders to follow him, which allowed Fernandes to run into the space in behind.
Thanks to Weghorst, Eriksen had the option to either play the ball across the face of the goal for the forward or find Fernandes. Eriksen chose to do the latter. As Weghorst had created the space, Fernandes had the time to take a touch and curl an effort into the top corner.
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Weghorst's role in the goal did not go unnoticed and fans on social media were quick to highlight his movement. Some United supporters have described him as a "bargain" while others believe Ten Hag's side has missed a traditional centre-forward.
They've also highlighted his overall link-up play and his ability to bring the likes of Eriksen, Fernandes and Rashford into the game.
Despite Weghorst's impressive debut, United struggled to get the better of Palace. The hosts had more shots on target - as David de Gea produced a top save to deny Odsonne Edouard - and Casemiro was lucky not to be sent off for his challenge on Wilfried Zaha.
Ten Hag was asked about Weghorst's performance during his post-match press conference. The United boss said: "It is not easy, to come into a team who is in a [good] run and has [developed] a way of how to play over seven or eight months.
"Then you only have one game to look [at] and I don't think that, [the 2-1 win against] City, represents how we play, though it was great to be part of, from the inside and out." Ten Hag added: "I thought it was the best choice [to play Weghorst], as he has a profile of a number nine and I thought he did well.
"He had good link-up play and he made a good run for the first goal with a front-post run by taking two players out. He helped Bruno be free. Also in [the] pressing, you can see it was a good debut."
