The leaving present has now left. Robin van Persie is the footballer who seemed the logical figurehead for Louis van Gaal’s Manchester United.
Instead his departure to Fenerbahce is an indication of the changing times at Old Trafford. He proved Sir Alex Ferguson’s final fine signing, the last great Ferguson footballer.
Yet now he is condemned to United history and a reminder of an earlier era. He now has more in common with Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes than Bastian Schweinsteiger and Memphis Depay.
A player who seemed to exude a timeless elegance saw his Old Trafford career go into sharp decline when Ferguson finished.
His was a spell of diminishing returns under different managers, from 30 goals in his debut campaign, to 18 under David Moyes and a mere 10 for Van Gaal.
Arguably the best player in England in 2012-13, Van Persie ranked outside United’s strongest 11 by the end of the 2014-15 campaign. It was an illogical deterioration. If Van Persie and Moyes were a mismatch, his relationship with Van Gaal, like his alliance with Ferguson, seemed a meeting of minds.
Instead, Wayne Rooney, with his rough-and-ready brand of hustle and bustle, became Van Gaal’s spearhead and lieutenant.
Van Persie’s transition from prolific to plodding accelerated. Criticisms of the Dutchman were exaggerated — it only required a glance at Radamel Falcao to see a forward really failing at Old Trafford — but the difference between 2013 and 2015 was marked.
Two years ago, Van Persie was the high-class catalyst. His seeming wisdom in exiting Arsenal was apparent when the best volleyer of his generation in the English game sealed his hat-trick against Aston Villa, and Ferguson’s 13th and valedictory league title, with a spectacular long-range strike.
Van Persie had exerted an impact in virtually every major match that season. Roberto Mancini had spent much of the campaign lamenting Manchester City’s failure to sign him. Perhaps it was a transfer that, indirectly, led to the Italian’s firing and smoothed Ferguson’s path to retirement.
He was United’s most clinical striker since Ruud van Nistelrooy and their most brilliant since Eric Cantona. Instead, he came to resemble Dwight Yorke, who could not sustain a wonderful initial impact and who left after three seasons.
Van Persie is still only 31 and never relied on pace. A classicist who approaches technical perfection ought to be equipped to play for years to come. But not for United. He opted not to stay and try to displace Rooney. His departure feels an admission of defeat.
After years of incremental improvement at Arsenal, the final verdict on his United years may be that he proved a one-season wonder. Yet there is an added significance.
Van Persie enabled Ferguson to bow out in fitting fashion as a winner. Thereafter, however, he was a man out of place and time at United as Arsenal won more trophies.
He was the last player plucked from Arsenal by a rival and the first buy to signify the financial shackles were off at Old Trafford.
During the years of Glazernomics, United would not have countenanced paying £24 million (Dh136.7m) for a player who was about to turn 29. Perhaps the owners only authorised Van Persie’s 2012 deal to reward Ferguson for his years of uncomplaining service.
But now Van Gaal has offered more for Sergio Ramos, whose duties as a defender render it impossible for him to prove as decisive in a title race.
United ended up writing off around £20m but, given their vast income and yearning for success, it amounted to a small price to pay for a league championship. In any case, his recruitment was not about resale value.
Van Persie had less longevity than anticipated. Yet he was a short-term sensation, a throwback who brought Ferguson’s reign to a glorious close yet who satisfied the instant gratification generation.
He is now the past, but, as the signing of the 30-year-old Schweinsteiger shows, he may represent a sign of things to come at United.
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