As RB Leipzig ran amok against Mainz at the weekend, Timo Werner once again highlighted to the rest of Europe just what a brilliant all-round forward he is becoming.
The 23 – year- old is in a rich vein of form at the moment and as the Bundesliga title challengers racked up an 8-0 victory on Saturday, he claimed the rare feat of a hat-trick of goals and a hat-trick of assists in the same game .
In 15 games this season Werner now has 13 goals and six assists. Having been expected to leave Leipzig last summer and move to Bayern Munich, he is now the spearhead behind their unlikely assault on the title.
A player of these gifts will only remain with a club like RB Leipzig for so long, however. He’s now been involved in 107 goals in 129 games for the club, with 11 in 28 for Germany, for whom he is emerging as the star of the next generation.
Like most of Germany’s biggest talents, Munich appeared to be the most likely destination, so it was a surprise when Werner signed a new contract last summer. According to reports in Germany the forward was disappointed at the time it took Bayern to make a move and their failure to try and sign him before his contract ran down.
That has put the rest of Europe on alert andManchester Unitedare one of several clubs linked with an attempt to sign Werner next summer , when a move is surely on the cards if he continues to plunder goals at such a rate.
Quite howcompetitive United can be in the summer transfer windowwill depend on how their attempts to salvage this season go. Finish the campaign with momentum and European football and they could be an attractive proposition for potential signings.
They have something else going for them as well: They’re Manchester United. The allure hasn’t faded completely yet and what player wouldn’t want to play a significant part in taking United back to the Premier League title and challengers in Europe?
That has to be United’s selling point next season and in Werner they might have a target that would not only send out a statement to the rest of Europe, but would also be a perfect fit for this side.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaerhas expressed a desire to build his team around speed and they don’t come much faster than Werner, who has clocked 11. 11 seconds for the 100 Meters.
But this isn’t a player who relies purely on blind pace. Knowing what’s coming doesn’t make it any easier to defend against and he’s shown this season there is far more to his game than that raw asset.
He can lead the line superbly, combining his quickness with an impressive physicality. But he can also play out wide, something he’s done for Germany on a number of occasions. That versatility could be key in a United forward line that is currently being built around pace and rotation.
For now Solskjaer and United are too reliant onDaniel James, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial. Add Werner into that mix, perhaps with another right winger, and suddenly the options are increased dramatically, with the prospect of plenty of movement across the front line.
Landing Werner will be no easy task for United, but it would immediately improve the creativity within the side, while at the same time adding a prolific goal scoring option, something that is desperately lacking at the moment.
If United want to make a statement next summer – and are in a position to do so – then pushing the boat out for Werner might be the perfect move.
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