Tottenham target Diego Forlan has revealed that he is interested in a return to England to play in the Premier League. Could the Atletico Madrid striker really come back a different player to the one that left Manchester United as a flop in 2004?
“If there is an offer and it’s good for Atletico and good for me I would be really happy to go back to England. But it will have to be good,” said Forlan.
He insists that he was happy in during his previous time in English football: “If a big chance to return to England came up, I would have to look at it. I loved my time in English football – the people, the fans, the football, everything.
“I wasn’t sad the way it ended at United to be honest. I was really happy during my time there and thank the people at United for how they treated me.”
At Old Trafford the Uruguayan took eight months to score his first goal for the club and only managed a disappointing 17 goals in 98 appearances during his two-and-a-half years there.
Then Forlan, 31, arrived in the Spanish La Liga and everything began to change for him and he became one of the most feared forwards in Europe. In his debut season in Villarreal the Uruguay striker netted 25 goals and won the Pichichi Trophy (Spanish golden boot winner). After a slight lull in the 2005/06 season scoring only 13 he got back to the top of his form the following year and grabbed 21 goals for El Submarino Amarillo.
After Atletico Madrid lost their captain Fernando Torres to Liverpool in the summer of 2007 they signed Forlan from Villarreal for €21 million.
Coming in for a talent like Torres meant that the Uruguayan had some big shoes to fill, but he rose to the challenge. He scored 23 goals in his first season, 35 in his second (winning the Pichichi Trophy for a second time) and 28 during the 2009/10 season.
He even helped the ‘cursed’ Madrid club onto European glory when they won the Europa League trophy after they broke Fulham hearts in the final.
Now that Forlan has gone from being a Premier League flop who suffered a barren spell to one of the most prolific frontmen in Europe can he come back and be successful in England?
The striker is certainly a lot more confident and has added so much more to his game since he has been in Spain. But his previous stint in the Premier League has probably put a lot of Europe’s elite off of the player, but it is arguably unfair that he has been overlooked. Surely his goal record in a fairly unfashionable Atletico team speaks for itself and he must be regarded as one of the better players in Europe.
However, the forward is now 31 years of age, which may put a few clubs off of him and raise the eyebrows of fans who do not wish to see their club sign an ageing star.
I have previously been of the opinion that he wouldn’t be worth his price tag considering his age. However, for a team like Spurs who will have to find their feet fast now that they will be competing in the UEFA Champions League (pending the qualifiers). Also, the Lilywhites have been crying out for a frontman and Forlan is a lot better option than AC Milan’s Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, who they have also been linked with.
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