Leverkusen ready to hold on to striker with more goals than Rashford amid Man Utd links

Bayer Leverkusen are ready to keep hold of Victor Boniface amid recent links to Manchester United.

According to Bild, the reigning German Bundesliga champions are ready to hand the Nigerian striker a one-year contract which will take the expiration of his contract to the summer of 2029.

Boniface has been one of the club’s best players and played no small role in their remarkable feat last season and was the recipient of the Bundesliga Rookie of the Year.

The 23-year-old has shown no sign of stopping, scoring eight goals in 15 games across all competitions this term, more than Marcus Rashford, who has five goals in 19 games.

With the poor form of Rasmus Højlund and Joshua Zirkzee, Ruben Amorim started Rashford as the striker in his first match as the Red Devils’ boss against Ipswich Town.

However, the Portuguese gaffer may not be convinced with the England international as the main striker and rightly so, thus the incessant links to Viktor Gyökeres and, most recently, Boniface.

Should United go all out for Boniface?

The Bayer Leverkusen striker may not be as prolific as Erling Haaland but could be an improvement on the Red Devils’ central forward options.

He has 29 goals in 49 games across all competitions for Bayer Leverkusen since joining the club in the summer of 2023., which is an average of 0.59 goals per game.

Within that time, Rashford, who is likely to be Amorim’s first-choice striker, has 13 goals in 62 games, which is a paltry 0.21 goals per game.

Højlund has averaged 0.32 goals per game with 18 goals scored in 56 games, while Zirkzee has 13 in 55, which is 0.24 goals per game.

When he is not scoring, Boniface can also set up his teammates for goals, recording 11 assists since the start of last season.

A move for the Nigeria international could also be more economical for Manchester United, given the current market situation.

He is currently valued at €45 million, though Bayer Leverkusen are likely to demand more based on the number of years left on his contract.

Article written by Henry Thornton .