Wout: It will be a special moment!

Weghorst has been an ever-present in Erik ten Hag’s starting line-up since joining on loan from Burnley last month.

The 30-year-old was signed on a deal that lasts until the end of the season and is glad to be making a contribution, as the Reds continue to fight on all four fronts.

“It’s good and I’m happy. That’s the thing that I wanted before I came here, to be part of it, to be important and the start overall is good,” Wout told club media recently.

“There’s room for improvement and things can go better but, as a beginning, the most important thing is that we’re keeping on track like we’re doing now by winning the games.

“Of course you want to have as much of a contribution in it by scoring goals and feeling important. There’s a little bit of room for improvement still, but we keep going.”

Weghorst got off the mark for United in his third game for the club, netting at Nottingham Forest in the recent Carabao Cup tie after Antony’s initial shot had been palmed out by Wayne Hennessey.

While it would no doubt have been a relief to find the net so soon after joining, Wout now wants to score in front of the M16 faithful, ahead of two key home games against Leicester City and Barcelona.

“Whether it’s the first one or not, at the end as a striker you want to score goals. That’s the best feeling, the most amazing feeling,” the Dutchman added.

“That’s what you’re doing it for as a striker.

“I’m waiting for the first one here at Old Trafford. Unfortunately it’s taken a little bit too long already for myself but I have to stay quiet and just work really hard and do my thing.

“Then hopefully that will come soon. I think that will be a special moment.”

Weghorst was deployed in an unusual position in the recent visits to Leeds and Barcelona, with Ten Hag utilising him as a 'no.10' or 'second striker' behind the in-form Marcus Rashford.

The switch, which Erik believes can help the likes of Jadon Sancho and Bruno Fernandes better attack the half-spaces around Rashford, first occurred during the closing stages at Elland Road, with Ten Hag saying after that match that he’d seen Wout playing in midfield as a youngster.

“Yeah, that was really in my younger days, to be honest!” Wout smiled when we raised the point with him.

“I think I was like 17 or 18 at the time, playing still as an amateur in the Netherlands but no, he mentioned it to me [at Leeds] at half-time that it could be an option to do some tactical switches.

“It happened in the second half and it went good for myself. It was actually new and the first time I’d played there but I quite liked it.

“The most important thing for me is to help the team. It helped us to win the match over there, doing also my defensive work.

“I took it on and, especially for the first time, I think I can be happy with it.”