Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie would without a shadow of a doubt be a lethal partnership compromising of two world-class strikers up top that would certainly make Manchester United even more feared for the coming season.

Whilst the club are being continuously linked with Arsenal’s want-away captain, there’s no doubt that as a world-class player proven in the Premier League and in Europe that he could hit form straight away, not feeling the pressure of having to live up to a hefty price-tag which would might faze some youngsters.

Some United fans are still questioning why we would be interested in an injury-hit player who has only been injury-free within the last 18 months. However those fans should be asking themselves whether or not van Persie’s arrival would cause Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez to stutter in their development at the club.

Both players whilst being one’s for the future have proven their worth to the club already despite being aged 21 and 24 respectively. Hernandez had a sensational first season at the club scoring 20 goals before struggling with injuries last season only managing 12 strikes.

Welbeck also scored 12 times during the season and improved as the year went on justifying Sir Alex Ferguson’s belief in him with impressive performances that deservedly saw him named in Roy Hodgson’s squad for Euro 2012. His goal against Sweden was an opportunistic strike but his work-rate was far more important as he kept going, looking at home in International football.

There is no doubt that signing van Persie would improve United and that if-fit fans would expect him to score 25-30 goals over the course of the season. The big question is with Rooney so important to United probably playing alongside him, how would that affect Welbeck and Hernandez:

Would they begin to feel more pressure in needing to make more contributions when on the pitch and rush chances?

Would they turn into a bag of nerves up front and worry about getting less time on the pitch losing confidence throughout the season?

Or would they actually be even more motivated to push for a starting-place becoming even more eager to prove their worth and actually become better players?

The answers to those questions will be answered sooner rather than later depending on which club van Persie signs for. Either way it is a big year for both Welbeck and Hernandez who need to ‘kick on’ again and relieve Rooney of some of the pressure up top.

My money would be that both players would improve if the Dutchman moves up to Old Trafford and can only benefit from playing and training alongside one of the top five forwards in the world. They will see less time on the pitch as a result but it shouldn’t stutter their development, Sir Alex just wouldn’t allow it, would he?

By Adam Dennehey @ADennehey87