With the 2022 World Cup in the rearview mirror, the club season in Europe is back on track. Meanwhile, the winter transfer window allows clubs to reinforce themselves ahead of a challenging term, and Manchester United are taking advantage of it.
Cristiano Ronaldo is no longer part of the club, having rescinded his contract in the wake of a bombshell interview in which he blasted thefront office as well as head coach Erik ten Hag.
While the Portuguese star already found a landing spot at Al-Nassr, the Premier League giants are reportedly about to secure his replacement. Their new signing is already making headlines, since he got the best of Lionel Messi in Qatar.
Lionel Messi’s enemy at 2022 World Cup to replace Cristiano Ronaldo at Man Utd
According to transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano, Manchester United have secured the signing of Dutch striker Wout Weghorst, who was on loan at Besiktas from Burnley. However, he became particularly famous by sparking Messi’s rage in the last World Cup.
Wout Weghorst (center) celebrates his first goal vs. Argentina. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
During an extremely heated Argentina-Netherlands quarterfinal that saw multiple yellow cards, ugly challenges and exchanges that continuedafter the penalty shootout, Weghorst seemed to infuriate Messi more than anyone else.
It was in his postgame interview that Messi dropped the iconic “Anda pa’allá, bobo,” (“Keep moving, idiot”), which Argentine reporter Gaston Edul later revealed was directedto Weghorst.
The 30-year-old forward made an impact coming off the bench that day, scoring twice to force the extra time—including a last-second equalizer. While many Argentinesremember him as the guy who Messi called “bobo,” the truth is Weghorst impressed United enough to takeRonaldo’s spot.
