Manchester United striker Robin van Persie has signed for Turkish club Fenerbahce for a fee of £5m.
Van Persie spent three years at Old Trafford after signing from Arsenal in 2012 and won the Premier League in 2013, scoring thirty goals in his first season at Old Trafford.
However, the last two years have been difficult, with managerial changes failing to motivate the Dutch forward.
Van Persie’s United highlights :
2012–13
On 15 August 2012, Arsenal announced they had agreed terms with Manchester United for his transfer, but Van Persie had yet to agree personal terms with the club. On 17 August, Van Persie transferred to Manchester United for an initial £22.5 million, with an additional £1.5 million to follow if United won a Premier League or Champions League title within the next four years. He signed a four-year contract, keeping him at the club until June 2016. Van Persie chose the number 20 shirt after assistant coach Rene Meulensteen convinced him that he would help secure Manchester United’s 20th league title.
He made his debut on 20 August, coming on as a 68th-minute substitute for Danny Welbeck in a 1–0 loss to Everton. Five days later, with his first shot for the club, he scored his first Manchester United goal, United’s first in a 3–2 home victory over Fulham. On 2 September 2012, he scored his first hat-trick for United in another 3–2 victory over Southampton, helping pull United back from a 2–1 deficit; his third goal was his 100th in the Premier League.
On 22 April 2013, he netted an impressive first-half hat-trick against Aston Villa, confirming Manchester United’s 20th league title with four games in hand. His second goal came from a Rooney pass from behind the half way line, which he volleyed into the net from outside the box.
Supporters of Manchester United voted Van Persie as the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year for the 2012–13 season. Van Persie was nominated by UEFA into the 10-man shortlist for the 2012–13 Best Player in Europe award.
2013–14
Van Persie kick-started his new campaign by scoring both of Manchester United’s goals in their 2–0 win against Wigan Athletic in the Community Shield, securing David Moyes’ first honour as club manager.
On 19 March 2014, Van Persie scored a hat-trick in a 3–0 win over Olympiacos in the second leg of the Champions League second round to send United through to the quarter-finals 3–2 on aggregate.
2014–15
Van Persie scored his first goal for the season in his fourth league appearance in a 5–3 defeat to Leicester City on 21 September 2014. He scored again in the next game against West Ham, helping United win the game 2–1. His final goal for the club came in February’s win over Burnley.
