Zirkzee already wants out of Manchester United

Manchester United forward Joshua Zirkzee is already looking to leave Old Trafford in the January transfer window, according to reports.

The Netherlands international joined from Serie A side Bologna in the summer transfer window as Manchester United invested £36.5m in the forward.

Zirkzee has contributed one goal and no assists in 11 appearances in all competitions this season with only five of those coming in Erik ten Hag’s starting XI.

The 23-year-old has failed to hit the ground running at Old Trafford – but there have been many cases of players moving to the Premier League and having a slow start before exploding into life.

However, Zirkzee might not hang around long enough to find out with Italian website Calciomercato claiming that the Man Utd forward ‘wants to return’ to Italy.

Zirkzee is worried that Rasmus Hojlund will now be starting in front of him with the Denmark international recovering from an injury sustained in pre-season.

It is understood that Zirkzee is ‘starting to regret the choice he made last summer, preferring the Red Devils to various Italian clubs and beyond’.

The report adds that ‘it remains to be seen whether Manchester United would be open to a loan transfer’ with Juventus ‘looking for a player with his characteristics’  – but AC Milan have ruled out a deal despite their initial ‘strong interest’.

Man Utd icon Dwight Yorke is frustrated that Zirkzee and Hojlund are “young boys trying to do a man’s job” with more experience needed up front.

Yorke told Prime Casino: “It’s not there, is it? It’s not there. We’ve played seven games, did our strikers even score? That tells you. Haaland has scored more goals than our strike force put together, that tells you what you need to know.

“We’ve asked these young boys to come in and do a man’s job at United. The expectation is really high. Rasmus Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee, these guys are unknown. At United you always had someone you could learn from. When I came in, Teddy and Cole, they’d already set the standards.

“There’s nobody with those standards at United right now. These players are coming in with nobody around them to learn from. Unless you bring in an established player, you’re bringing in kids to do a man’s job. They’re still in that learning process until you get to 25 or 26. Then you’ve done your apprenticeship.”

Yorke insists that Zirkzee and Hojlund aren’t going to frighten defenders, he added: “Of course, there are exceptions like Haaland, but we’ve got guys still trying to find their feet at the club, let alone the Premier League. We don’t have that kind of presence up top, to threaten defenders.

“When we used to play, there was always a name like Van Nistelrooy, me, and Wayne Rooney. Defenders don’t look forward to that. Now we’ve got Hojlund and Zirkzee, not household names to give you sleepless nights.

“That’s why United are easy to play against, they don’t pose a threat like they used to. Yes, they’ve got good players. Rashford on his day is as good as anyone else. Amad, who’s a young kid coming in, has looked promising when he’s played.

“Antony is not producing. We’ve got a mixture of everything. We’re all hoping that these guys are going to come to the forefront, but they’re young boys, still learning.”