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Joshua Zirkzee Netherlands flag

2025-26 Performances

View full 2025-26 profile

4.8 Season Average Rating
Appearances
24
Goals
2
Assists
1
Yellow cards
2
Florida Man said:
He has no business starting but I’m eager to see how he performs with one or two of Mbuemo, Cunha, and Šeško. We’ve seen glimpses of quality last season. He has shown to have good ball control in tight spaces. Let’s see how it works out until January, and if it’s still mediocre, we think of a transfer or loan for him by then.
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He will be a backup to Sesko and Mount playing as a false9. Sure he's interesting player to some extent, but his lack of athleticism means he will be shipped out in a few transfer windows. Also he strikes to me as a MArtial type, not player who's used to play at such high intensity so will pick up hamstring injuries and become unusable.
 
Maybe this is a bit of an out there suggestion but any chance of Zirkzee getting a chance a CM? Clearly we need a new CM but if we don't sign one I really wouldn't mind seeing him there in the odd game as an experiment. To me he's definitely more of a 10 or a CM than a striker. He's not the best finisher and doesn't have great pace but what he is, is extremely good on the ball in tight spaces and great at linking up the play. Some of his best stuff has come from when he's found himself in deeper positions. He's a big lump too so would add some muscle to the midfield.

He's not a striker for me but he's an absolute baller and I'd love to see him find his way into the team somehow. That said I can't see him getting many chances ahead of Cunha, Mbeumo, Bruno, Mount, so playing deeper might be an option, especially when we are lacking in that area.
 
HotOne said:
Maybe this is a bit of an out there suggestion but any chance of Zirkzee getting a chance a CM? Clearly we need a new CM but if we don't sign one I really wouldn't mind seeing him there in the odd game as an experiment. To me he's definitely more of a 10 or a CM than a striker. He's not the best finisher and doesn't have great pace but what he is, is extremely good on the ball in tight spaces and great at linking up the play. Some of his best stuff has come from when he's found himself in deeper positions. He's a big lump too so would add some muscle to the midfield.

He's not a striker for me but he's an absolute baller and I'd love to see him find his way into the team somehow. That said I can't see him getting many chances ahead of Cunha, Mbeumo, Bruno, Mount, so playing deeper might be an option, especially when we are lacking in that area.
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Haven’t seen that at all. So the question is could he do a Joelinton? I don’t see that he has the positioning, stamina, awareness, speed and tacking ability to be a midfielder.

He’s tall, but I’ve not seen him use that size to his advantage. He’s a Poundland Berbatov.
 
ClaytonBlackmoorLeftPeg said:
Haven’t seen that at all. So the question is could he do a Joelinton? I don’t see that he has the positioning, stamina, awareness, speed and tacking ability to be a midfielder.

He’s tall, but I’ve not seen him use that size to his advantage. He’s a Poundland Berbatov.
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Watch him more closely. He has absolutely brilliant feet. He's very skilful. Incredible close control and quick feet for a big guy. He's excellent at retaining possession and making the right forward pass.

I'd agree he doesn't use his size to his advantage very often but perhaps that's something that can be coached into him.
 
HotOne said:
Maybe this is a bit of an out there suggestion but any chance of Zirkzee getting a chance a CM? Clearly we need a new CM but if we don't sign one I really wouldn't mind seeing him there in the odd game as an experiment. To me he's definitely more of a 10 or a CM than a striker. He's not the best finisher and doesn't have great pace but what he is, is extremely good on the ball in tight spaces and great at linking up the play. Some of his best stuff has come from when he's found himself in deeper positions. He's a big lump too so would add some muscle to the midfield.

He's not a striker for me but he's an absolute baller and I'd love to see him find his way into the team somehow. That said I can't see him getting many chances ahead of Cunha, Mbeumo, Bruno, Mount, so playing deeper might be an option, especially when we are lacking in that area.
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Absolutely no way in hell is he mobile enough to do that job. He’s as immobile as Casemiro….just also lacking the nous of a 5-time champions league winning midfielder
 
He might have some moments here or there, but he is too slow to succeed and be a consistent performer. He should go back to Serie A.
 
T00lsh3d said:
Absolutely no way in hell is he mobile enough to do that job. He’s as immobile as Casemiro….just also lacking the nous of a 5-time champions league winning midfielder
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He's definitely not as immobile as Casemiro. He can actually dribble and has incredibly quick feet, unlike Casemiro, so in that sense he's actually very agile for his size. I wouldn't even class him as immobile. Pace wise he doesn't come across as quick but he's certainly not as slow or immobile as people are making out.

And anyway, when did it become an absolute necessity to be mobile and pacey to play CM? We can't say Zirkzee is more immobile than a Carrick or Scholes or many other CMs who have done just fine. Theres an over obsession with athleticism and pace nowadays. A player who's technically good, can keep possession and link up the play can be just as good if not better than a mobile athletic freak running around. I'd take a Carrick or Scholes over a Kante or Mackalele every day of the week in this team. (I'm not saying Zirkzee is Carrick or Scholes) But you get my point re the obsession with mobility.
 
HotOne said:
He's definitely not as immobile as Casemiro. He can actually dribble and has incredibly quick feet, unlike Casemiro, so in that sense he's actually very agile for his size. I wouldn't even class him as immobile. Pace wise he doesn't come across as quick but he's certainly not as slow or immobile as people are making out.

And anyway, when did it become an absolute necessity to be mobile and pacey to play CM? We can't say Zirkzee is more immobile than a Carrick or Scholes or many other CMs who have done just fine. Theres an over obsession with athleticism and pace nowadays. A player who's technically good, can keep possession and link up the play can be just as good if not better than a mobile athletic freak running around. I'd take a Carrick or Scholes over a Kante or Mackalele every day of the week in this team. (I'm not saying Zirkzee is Carrick or Scholes) But you get my point re the obsession with mobility.
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It’s not a priority for me, but it absolutely is for Amorim if Baleba is his target for that midfield role. And really, in a system with 2 midfielders, it should be. Very different to a 3 in midfield
 
Can you guys loan him out or something. We will be stuck with fecking Wout in Oranje otherwise.
 
I wouldn't be against selling him if we got an offer.

Sesko will be the starting 9. Cunha can be his back up, or Mbuemo. Our squad has far too many players.
 
He was injured in pre season. Relax
 
Something I realised is that Zirkzee was bought by United in a season where he scored 11 goals in the Serie A.

We obviously didn't buy him expecting him to be a 20 a season goalscorer in the PL.

However, there was a reason he won the young player of the season and that's more due to how he plays than him being statistically proficient.

He was showing his ability post January, if he starts adding some goals say going from 3 to 10 then I think he's good enough as a squad player because what he brings is a different type of striker to what we have.

He isn't ever going to be a 15/20 goalscorer, some people will be okay with that and some won't simply due to the position he occupies.
 
ha cunha mata ta said:
Something I realised is that Zirkzee was bought by United in a season where he scored 11 goals in the Serie A.

We obviously didn't buy him expecting him to be a 20 a season goalscorer in the PL.
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We bought Rasmus off the back of him scoring 9 goals in the same division (from 32 games). For some reason we burdened him with the expectation that he’d be our main striker and score goals. Apart from a purple patch in Jan/Feb 24 he’s been awful.
 
TrailMonkey said:
We bought Rasmus off the back of him scoring 9 goals in the same division (from 32 games). For some reason we burdened him with the expectation that he’d be our main striker and score goals. Apart from a purple patch in Jan/Feb 24 he’s been awful.
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The difference is that Hojlund doesn't have anything to justify him staying.

I watched a video showing that he has in the PL
  • One of the lowest touches in the box
  • One of the lowest shots taken
  • Low progressive passes
  • Low defensive attributes
  • Low hold up play
  • Of course and no goal output
It's not a coincidence many of us feel like we are playing with 10 men when Hojlund is playing up top because he really isn't doing anything.

Zirkzee on the other hand is quite good or atleast capable at all of those things except actually scoring a goal.

I think it's why Zirkzee is quite polarising. He has a variety of abilities and his skill can open up defences but at the same time he doesn't seem predatory for a player that is occupying the number 9 spot and some find him slow (I don't think he looks slow after January last season).
 
ha cunha mata ta said:
The difference is that Hojlund doesn't have anything to justify him staying.

I watched a video showing that he has in the PL
  • One of the lowest touches in the box
  • One of the lowest shots taken
  • Low progressive passes
  • Low defensive attributes
  • Low hold up play
  • Of course and no goal output
It's not a coincidence many of us feel like we are playing with 10 men when Hojlund is playing up top because he really isn't doing anything.

Zirkzee on the other hand is quite good or atleast capable at all of those things except actually scoring a goal.

I think it's why Zirkzee is quite polarising. He has a variety of abilities and his skill can open up defences but at the same time he doesn't seem predatory for a player that is occupying the number 9 spot and some find him slow (I don't think he looks slow after January last season).
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While i dont go along with the theory that Zirzkee is slow (his max speed last season was decent), Hojlund is fast. Thats what he brings and given we're trying to offload Garnacho and Rashford its something that could be quite useful especially off the bench.

Also while its true Zirkzee is capable of a bit of skill or a pass, the frequency is low compared to creative players with an average of 3 progressive passes
 
All the talk has been about Mainoo but this guy not starting against Grimsby isn’t a great look for his chances this season, I get the argument that he’s coming back from injury but he needs to build his fitness as well.
 
lostcauz said:
All the talk has been about Mainoo but this guy not starting against Grimsby isn’t a great look for his chances this season, I get the argument that he’s coming back from injury but he needs to build his fitness as well.
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Sesko needs to build fitness and get some form quick. That’s the priority. Without European football, Sesko would likely play most of the games including domestic cup competition. Because there is no luxury of dropping the cups when you have no glory to aim for in the league. Trying to get back to European football spot on the table is a goal, but not achievement.

Zirkzee would unlikely be called upon that much this season unless injuries to other key players. And that he has to stay for himself.
 
Grimsby 2:2 Man Utd
Pretty sure he did an Antony vs Coventry when we equalised and ran into them to give it large, the ref ran over but not sure the cameras caught it. Hopefully he eats some humble pie after that and grows up a bit.
 
He looked sharp again when he came on. He needs to get more opportunities.
 
tomaldinho1 said:
Pretty sure he did an Antony vs Coventry when we equalised and ran into them to give it large, the ref ran over but not sure the cameras caught it. Hopefully he eats some humble pie after that and grows up a bit.
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Any evidence or mentions of this? I assumed he was just trying to get the ball back
 
Golden Nugget said:
Any evidence or mentions of this? I assumed he was just trying to get the ball back
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Might have been that - but I thought when the camera panned there the ball was long gone. The ref ran over as well so thought something happened but could only see him surrounded by their players but nothing happening when the tv showed it. I think the guy he elbowed in the back had been giving him shit and riled him up and he'd gone looking for him.
 
He did okay tonight. However, he came on at a time when we were playing in the opposition’s half so he shoud have been involved. Had he started, I’m not sure he’d have been any better than the others.
 
Looked good when he came on. Very good pen too. Would start him over Sesko at the moment
 
Was good to see him on the pitch again. I'd start him against Burnley.
 
It's not saying much but he's the best striker we have by an absolute mile. Even if he's not an out and our striker. He always looks assured and calm on the ball. He has great feet and makes the right passes. Shame he's not the quickest or the best finisher but he's the best of a bad bunch.

He should be starting up front or as false 9 for us whenever he's at full fitness. We are a far better team with him.
 
Did pretty well when he came on I thought, of course with the caveat that Grimsby had run themselves into the ground by then.

One of the small batch of likeable players United currently have.
 
Really want to see him starting next game. Came on and really got himself involved and held the ball up nicely. Cunha, Mbeumo and Mount can really benefit from him
 
Classy player. Not sure how effective he is at the end of it all, but I really like watching him play.

Would like to see him play this weekend.
 
Can't imagine Amorim well give him significant time on the weekend. Even being 1-2 down against a league 2 team he only gives him 10 minutes.
 
GDaly95 said:
Classy player. Not sure how effective he is at the end of it all, but I really like watching him play.

Would like to see him play this weekend.
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Same, he's probably my favourite player to watch at the club. It's so fun watching him, his footwork and technique is awesome.

I think he should be used the same way Firmino was at Liverpool.
 
Really growing on me our sexy Zirkzee. I thought he looked really timid when he forst joined but is starting to show some real character.

I think he and Cunha could clash though.
 
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