Comparing Matheus Cunha to Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee | OneFootball

After enduring their lowest-scoring season in Premier League history, it’s no surprise that Manchester United are targeting a revolution in Ruben Amorim’s frontline.

The Red Devils are blessed with a talented young crop of attackers, but finding a combination boasting the requisite harmony has proven to be a challenge. They signed a striker from Atalanta two summers ago in the hope of him blossoming into their number nine for the long haul, but their desperate need to acquire another goalscorer this summer shows that his arrival hasn’t exactly gone to plan.

The reported addition of Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers is the first phase of Man Utd’s summer overhaul. The ego-laden but undoubtedly gifted Brazilian has proven his worth in England, but will he function as a direct challenger to Amorim’s current striker options: Rasmus Højlund and Joshua Zirkzee?

Here’s a statistical comparison of the three, as we dig deep into their goalscoring, playmaking and defensive capabilities.

Goalscoring

2024–25 was Cunha’s most productive goalscoring season. / IMAGO/Pro Sports Images

Man Utd require a more reliable source of goals. This is not a team devoid of talent—well, they’re paid like they’re gifted, anyway—but they woefully underperformed in front of goal last season. United scored a measly 44 times in the Premier League, but, according to Understat, were projected to score almost 13 more goals.

The Red Devils thus require an efficient finisher. Last season, Højlund (four Premier League goals) and Zirkzee (three Premier League goals) underperformed their expected goals by 1.3 and 1.8 respectively, per FBRef. Cunha, meanwhile, enjoyed the most prolific scoring campaign of his career, netting 15 league goals for Wolves, and he outperformed his xG haul by a whopping 6.4.

Now, some might suggest that such an overperformance could be a potential red flag, but Cunha boasts the requisite ball-striking to reliably defy metrics. He’s a threat from long distance, and he tends to shoot on sight when a yard of space opens up. In the Premier League last season, Cunha averaged more shots per 90 minutes (3.81 to 3.22) and shots on-target (1.52 to 1.29) than Højlund and Zirkzee combined.

The Braziilian will have to get used to not being the star in Manchester if Bruno Fernandes sticks around, but United supporters should expected no hesitance from Cunha as a shooter. His shot selection may frustrate at times, but there’s a reason why he backs himself. He’s seemingly only improving as a goalscorer and is undoubtedly the pick of the bunch here.

Playmaking

Zirkzee makes the game look easy at times. / IMAGO/NurPhoto

While Cunha is improving as a goalscorer, Man Utd aren’t signing him to merely alleviate their woes in front of goal. The Brazilian brings much more to the table.

Cunha isn’t expected to function as Amorim’s leading man up top, but instead operate primarily in the left inside channel as one of two number tens in the manager’s 3-4-2-1. From this position, Cunha’s supreme ball-carrying abilities will come to the forefront. According to The Analyst, he’s among a group of just 15 players to have both attempted (55) and created (38) at least 35 shots for his team following a ball carry and one of only 12 players to have been involved in at least 12 goals following a carry—since the start of 2023–24.

Cunha’s ability to carry the ball over large distances renders him a huge counter-attacking threat, but he also possesses the required ball manipulation to weave his way out of tight spots and beat his man one-on-one.

His career take-on success rate of 55.2% ranks higher than both Højlund (37.7%) and Zirkzee (40.4%). The Danish striker is yet to prove himself as a playmaker, averaging just 2.22 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes (SCA per 90) in his career, while Zirkzee is ever so easy on the eye and often makes the game look far too easy. Still, his 2.82 career SCA per 90 ranks lower than Cunha’s 3.63 and the Brazilian also produced 4.57 per 90 last season.

His ability to take players out of the game when carrying the ball upfield contributes to his impressive creative numbers, but Cunha’s also got an eye for the final pass. He wouldn‘t have recorded 13 assists over the previous two Premier League seasons otherwise. Højlund has notched just two league assists since joining United, while Zirkzee has only ever recorded more than five assists in a single league campaign just once in his career—with Anderlecht in 2020–21.

Out of Possession

Does Højlund at least contribute heavily without the ball? / IMAGO/PRiME Media Images

Vitor Pereira’s Wolves were arguably more enterprising without possession than Amorim’s team. The Red Devils boss must evolve Man Utd into a team that can reliably disrupt the opposition’s build-up to improve on their woeful 2024–25 campaign. Some have questioned Amorim’s capacity to do so if he persists with his preferred back three.

Cunha has shown that he can work hard without the ball and isn’t a liability in the defensive phase, but stats from the Premier League in March showed that the Brazilian had spent the most time walking out of outfielders in the division (77.6%). If United are to develop into a more efficient pressing outfit, that has to change.

Zirkzee, while often languid with the ball at his feet, worked wonders without the ball for Thiago Motta’s Bologna last season and isn‘t a slouch when pressing high, while Højlund, similar to his work in possession, requires refinement defensively. Zirkzee averaged 0.19 tackles in the attacking third per 90 minutes in the Premier League last season, as well as a combined 1.28 tackles and interceptions per 90, while Højlund averaged a mere 0.04 and 0.22 respectively.

Cunha (0.17) averaged fewer tackles in the attacking third than Zirkzee but more than Højlund, but he bested the pair for ball recoveries per 90 minutes.

Overall, Cunha is a contradiction defensively. Running stats depict a lack of interest, but the eye test and other metrics show a willingness. Under Amorim at United, he won’t be able to hide. Zirkzee and Højlund both supply effort, but the latter, in particular, is nowhere near disruptive enough.

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