A promising-turned-tumultuous early career for Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez is quickly turning around in his first few weeks with Real Madrid.
He made his third career cap for the Spanish giants on Saturday against Deportivo, and it was one to remember. After being substituted on, his only two shots were outside-the-box goals to notch a brace and help power Madrid late to a 8-2 drubbing of the newly promoted side.
Manchester United sent Hernandez to Madrid on a loan deal that has the potential to become a full purchase after Louis van Gaal cleaned house with a number of large-scale signings. He was expendable there after an up-and-down couple of seasons, but one club's trash is another's treasure.
And on Sunday, well, Chicharito simply looked like the player many expected to see more often after his breakout 2010-11 campaign. Fox Soccer captured his magnificent first goal:
As if that stunning strike wasn't enough to wow Los Blancos fans, he offered up another long-range missile in stoppage time that deflected off a defender and had too much pace for the Deportivo goalkeeper to keep up with.
That made both of Chicharito's first two goals outside-the-box shots, which he didn't score one of with Manchester United as Squawka Football illustrated:
That's not bad for a player known solely for his up-close finishing and inside-the-area prowess.
What's more is that not only were they of such impressive fashion, but they were also his first two shot attempts in a La Liga match, per WhoScored.com:
It was a crazy summer to say the least for Real Madrid, one that saw the arrival of James Rodriguez and Toni Kroos along with the sudden departure of Xabi Alonso and Angel Di Maria just before the season. But somewhat under the rug was the loss of squad striker Alvaro Morata—the chief replacement to Karim Benzema.
Carlo Ancelotti's side was linked to a number of high-profile strikers to fill the void but instead rolled the dice, hoping that Benzema could shoulder the load and Hernandez could excel in relief surrounded by such a stout attacking line.
The French striker hasn't gotten off to a strong start in 2014-15, but Hernandez? Well, it looks like he's settling right in.
We saw the Mexican national team reap success in the World Cup with Chicharito largely coming off the bench, and he made an impact in almost every appearance. He failed to show that same ability with the Red Devils, but a change of scenery has made all the difference.
Hernandez told Claro Sports (via the Mirror's Ben Burrows):
There was no confidence. I remained patient and that’s why I’m here today. It was a very tough year especially because they didn’t believe in me.I had the chance to meet Ancelotti when he was Chelsea coach. The faith he has in his players motivates me and makes me work hard.I really want to make the most of my time here. Any footballer dreams about joining Real Madrid. I know I'm here for a reason. The statistics support me, I'm a good player and a good person.
Denis Doyle/Getty Images
To say that the Champions League winners have gotten off to a strong start domestically would be a bold-faced lie, with two defeats in their first four matches. But after outscoring their last two overall opponents 13-3, it's looking like Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and company are set on putting those early struggles in the background.
Hernandez figures to be a big part of that, with Ancelotti opting to go with him regularly off the bench as the backup striker. And so far, he's making his boss look like a very smart man.
Time will tell if Chicharito is able to shoulder the load over the course of the season—with a packed slate of European competition along with La Liga, Madrid will need his impact more often than not. But early indications are that Madrid pulled off a deadline-day steal when they acquired the Mexican forward.
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