Rio Ferdinand has challenged Matheus Cunha to use his match-winning brace against Roma as the benchmark for his Manchester United career, admitting the Brazilian has not delivered enough since his move from Wolves.
Cunha scored twice in the final 10 minutes as United came from 2-0 down to beat Roma 3-2 at Old Trafford on Tuesday night, ending a nine-game winless run. The 28-year-old was sent off in the final moments of the game, but Ferdinand still regards the display as the standard going forward.
A Defining Performance in a Red Shirt
Cunha is in his second year in Manchester after joining for £62.5million. Last season he impressed in patches, scoring 10 times, but his midweek display was his most defining in a red shirt to date.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ferdinand said: "I think for Cunha this could be liftoff where he starts to catch fire. I think he's a hugely talented footballer and he showed glimpses, especially last season."
Ferdinand's Message to the Brazilian
"Could this be the game that unlocks him? Because I haven't seen it enough yet with him. You see moments, and you go, 'Oh, look at that, that's why we paid the big money for him', but not enough," Ferdinand added.
"He needs to be watching back that performance and go, where were the fans feeding off me there? Where was I getting them going? Where was I getting the team and being the pressure point for the team? It was without the ball a lot of the time. And keep bringing that every game."
Cunha's Versatility and Responsibility
Cunha has had to show his versatility this season with United's only genuine No 9, Benjamin Sesko, out injured, which has seen the ex-Wolves man lead the line on occasion.
He acknowledged United's recent struggles but maintained he needed to be the type of player who stood up when the chips were down. "I think everything, when we tried to do it, being part of Man Utd is very hard because in these kinds of moments in the season, we know we always have these kinds of comparisons with the past. We need to have these kinds of games like today, and then we'll pass the hard moment. But today was a blessed day for me," he said.
"Being part of this, I have a responsibility. I always talk inside about that – I need to be this kind of guy – to have the responsibility in the hard moments and the good moments. I always need to show up and be there for nights like today."
