Arsenal Legend Paul Merson has said he recently told Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to drop ”lost” Daniel James from his Manchester United squad over the summer. James joined the United side last summer from Swansea City on a £15million move. The midfielder was one of the game favorites at the beginning with the potential he had to offer in the early stages of the season.
Unfortunately for the winger, he is yet to find the back of the net since August. James’ last assist was in December during a match against Burnley. During United’s clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Monday, Merson said the Wales international looked ”lost” during their 2-0 win. Merson believes the 22-year-old relies solely on pace and should add more to his repertoire before starting for the United side.
Merson told news reporters: “With Manchester United, you’re talking about one of the biggest clubs in the world not having a center forward. They’re playing with Daniel James upfront, who sooner or later has to be taken out of the team. You feel sorry for the lad, now. He looks a bit lost if I’m honest he needs a break.”
“He’s playing all the time but his game is based on sheer pace. It won’t bring you much alone in the Premier League, and I feel for him. He needs to be brought out of the team but they’ve haven’t got anyone to bring in for him.”
He added: “It was a big win for Manchester United at Chelsea, but they weren’t good. They’re two just-above average teams if I’m being honest. United winning just covers over the cracks, while Chelsea losing means you start seeing the cracks.”
“If Chelsea put their chances away in the first half, the game’s over, but they didn’t. Harry Maguire should’ve been sent off and he then scores, so there were a lot of things where you could say with Chelsea they could’ve won the game.”
Man United moved to the seventh place with 38 points and they are three points adrift from fourth-placed Chelsea. United will travel to Jan Breydel Stadium on Thursday for the first leg of their round of 32 Europa League match against Club Brugge.
