Duro Ikhazuagbe
Despite joining Manchester United during the January transfer window and having the season blighted by the Covid-19 pandemic, former Super Eagles forward, Odion Ighalo still placed fifth in the Red Devils’ 2019/20 season scoring chart.
The China Super League’s Shanghai Shenhua player on loan till January 31, 2021 at Old Trafford, bagged five goals in 19 matches of which only five were starts.
It was the same number of goals as Scott McTominay who played 37 games for United.
The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations Golden Boot winner Ighalo’s efforts came against Derby County (2) and Norwich City in the Emirates FA Cup, and he netted twice in Europe in the Europa League knockout fixtures against Club Brugge and LASK.
Interestingly, United’s French striker, Anthony Martial, ended the 2019-2020 season as the club’s top scorer with 23 goals in all competitions.
Martial’s personal-best tally, aided by the seven goals he registered after lockdown, sees him top the Reds’ goalscoring charts for the first time since his debut campaign of 2015/16, when the then 19-year-old hit 17.
In second place is Marcus Rashford with 22 goals, while teenage striker Mason Greenwood comes next with 17 goals.
Bruno Fernandes who like Ighalo joined the Red Devils in January made it to the top five goalscorers for United despite missing the first half of the season.
The Portuguese attacking midfielder tallied 12 goals in 22 games.
It was the first time since 2010/11 that two players had scored 20 or more goals during the same campaign for the Reds, when Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez crossed that landmark.
Seventeen of United’s no.9’s efforts came in the Premier League, with his total augmented by four goals in the Europa League and one each in the FA and Carabao Cups.
And Martial’s haul compares favourably with some of his domestic rivals – Manchester City pair Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus also managed 23 goals in all competitions, as did Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Premier League Golden Boot winner Jamie Vardy.
