Tough call on Player of the Week for the opening fixtures of the Barclays Premier League.
A lot of players were quite impressive – Robin Van Persie and Danny Welbeck for Manchester United, Fernandinho, Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero for Manchester City, Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturrdige for Liverpool, Frank Lampard and Oscar for Chelsea . . . the list goes on.
But one man sticks out and despite it being the popular choice, it also feels like the right choice.
Robin Van Persie. The Dutchman has us running out of adjectives he’s so talented.
For his first seven seasons at Arsenal, RVP was defined by one thing: injuries. When he did manage to play, his quality was obvious. But in those first seven years, from 2004-2011, he failed to play more 28 matches in a single season. Naturally, the talk was always about what if.
What if Van Persie got healthy?
What if he could be a consistent starter?
What if he managed a full season at 100%?
Then finally, in 2011-12, we got our answer as RVP appeared in all 38 Premier League matches (starting all but one of them) and scored 30 goals. It was clear, right then and there, that Van Persie deserved to be in the conversation of who is the best pure striker on the planet.
Manchester United didn’t hesitate, pouncing on the Dutchman who was looking for the one thing he desired when arriving at the Emirates in the summer of 2004 – a Premier League title. After bagging 26 goals last season on the way to hoisting the championship trophy in May, Van Persie finally had his title along with the praise from entire footballing world.
And yet just two months later, the majority of pundits were back questioning Manchester United. Doubters, myself included, suggested that the spending of Manchester City and Chelsea had put those clubs in the lead for the 2013-14 title. Implied within that doubt was the issue of whether Van Persie, now aged 30, could duplicate his extraordinary form of the last two seasons.
On Saturday, Van Persie (and all of Manchester United for that matter) silenced the doubters. Oh yes, there will be a title race in 2013-14 and the Red Devils have just as good of a chance at winning it as City and Chelsea.
As for the race for Golden Boot, well, Van Persie has set forth his intent to make a run at that as well. The Dutchman’s brace in the driving rain at the Liberty Stadium was something to behold. An incredible leaping side volley that put cement into the boots of Swansea defender Ashley Williams was followed by a net-popping rifle of a goal in the second half.
This man can do it all, my friends. And we look forward to watching the Robin Van Persie Show each and every week from now through May 11, 2014.
