Key Takeaways:
Radamel Falcao had a stellar career with Porto, Atletico Madrid, and Monaco.
His Premier League stints with Manchester United and Chelsea were disappointing.
Falcao's return to Monaco marked a resurgence in his form.
Modern football fans who have been following the game since the past few years might not be familiar with the name Radamel Falcao. A look back at football history books would show us that he was one of the greatest strikers of his generation, and one of the finest players produced by Colombia. He has played for several clubs throughout his career, and made history with the likes of Porto, Atletico Madrid, and Monaco. Falcao was an instrumental part of both Porto and Atletico Madrid, as his brilliant goal scoring abilities played a huge part in both of then winning the UEFA Europa League at the time. He also played a major role in the legendary 2016-17 season Monaco side, which created history by overcoming PSG and winning the league.
All of these point towards a highly successful career, however there was a phase in his career where Falcao struggled to replicate his brilliance and failed to meet the massive expectations fans had on him. Let us look at the time when Radamel Falcao played in the Premier League.
Loan move to Manchester United
On September 1st 2014, Manchester United signed Falcao on loan from Monaco for £6 million, with an option to sign permanently for £43.5 million at the season's end. The move occured at a time when he was linked with several European giants like Juventus, Manchester City, and Real Madrid, which goes on to show brilliant the player was. Massive expectations also came with the move, as United fans were expecting Falcao to guide them to the very top.
Falcao made his debut as a substitute on September 14th against Queens Park Rangers, which United ended up winning 4-0. His first goal for the club came on 5th October, which saw him score a winner against Everton in a 2-1 home victory against Everton. Falcao had a difficult period after that, as he left on the bench over 19-year-old James Wilson against Southampton, with then United manager Van Gaal stating that the decision was based on fitness.
Falcao began to show his qualities towards the end of December, as he scored against Aston Villa in the second half to earn a draw for United. This was followed by Falcao assisting for Wayne Rooney in United's 3-1 win over Newcastle, and scoring the only goal vs Stoke City in a 1-1 draw to earn United a point.
Falcao's career at Manchester United went downhill after this period, as he ended up being left out of the squad and rarely played for the team. The player's performance was extremely poor as well whenever he played. He even ended up playing for the United under-21 team in a 1-1 draw vs Tottenham. All of this resulted in a disastrous end to his United career, which finished with just 4 goals in 29 matches.
An opportunity to Prove everyone wrong
Despite his failure at United, everyone knew that a brilliant player was there in Falcao. This made Chelsea take a gamble with him, as the Blue signed him on a £4 million loan fee with option to make the transfer permanent for £38 million.
Unfortunately, this move as well ended up as a disaster. Falcao made his debut as a substitute in Chelsea's 1-0 lose to Arsenal in the Community Shield. His league debut came 6 days later in Chelsea's 2-2 draw against Swansea City. It was on against Crystal Palace that Falcao scored his first and only Chelsea goal in a match that saw them lose 1-2. The rest of his Chelsea tenure was overshadowed by injuries and he never played for the club.
That was the end of Radamel Falcao's football career in England. He was undoubtedly a brilliant player, but just couldn't find success in the Premier League. Falcao eventually returned to Monaco and got back to his goalscoring best, helping the club reach the Champions League semi-finals that season and also become league champions.
