It’s been a brutal start to the season for Manchester United, who are winless in nine games on the spin. 

And as Michael Carrick fights to save his job, they must now find a way to deal with the most potent forward in Europe’s top five leagues.

Donyell Malen, the reinvented centre-forward, has caught fire in Italy, a world away from the talented but unspectacular winger who left Aston Villa.

The 27-year-old arrives at Old Trafford on Tuesday as Europe’s most prolific striker, with Roma unbeaten in Serie A. Villa let him go for just £25million.

Roma are contenders in Serie A, and Malen’s goals are the biggest reason why.

The Dutchman has totalled 22 goals in 2026. That is more than any player in the big five leagues, including newly crowned Ballon d’Or winner Harry Kane.

At Villa, it never quite happened for him. Malen arrived from Borussia Dortmund in January 2025 - the same window as Jhon Duran’s departure - but he spent most of his minutes out wide and never nailed down a starting place. Neither wing suited a player miscast as a pacey wideman.

The Dutchman scored just seven goals in a year at Villa Park, which hid his quality. He grew into his second season and was named Villa’s Player of the Month in November; but two months later, he was sold.

'It was my decision,' Malen told Italian media. 'I wanted to play and be part of a team where I could take the field every weekend and play an important role. At that stage, I didn’t feel important, so I think I made the best choice.

'Today I feel I’m in the right place with the right people. The coach and my teammates show a lot of confidence in me, and together, all of this is helping me become the player I dreamed of being.'

The signs of improvement were here before this summer's World Cup, though Malen  could not find the net despite starting all three Netherlands group games. Brian Brobbey was the side' focal point, returning Malen to a supporting role alongside Cody Gakpo.

It was a surprise to Dutch fans, who remember the centre forward terrorising defences at PSV, where he scored 19 goals and added eight assists in his final full season in 2020-21.

Roma boss Gian Piero Gasperini, who joined the club the previous summer, had moved Malen into a role he had not played in years: striker. The result was an outrageous 14 goals in 18 games to finish the season.

Malen has rewarded his manager’s faith by helping secure Champions League football, a level the club have not reached since 2018.

Position is only part of the story. Once forced to create chances, Malen now finishes them. Argentine wizards Matias Soule and Paulo Dybala are his accomplices in a stellar front three, feeding him the best service in Europe.

Starting alongside Dybala, Malen got off to the perfect start to the season with a hat-trick in a 4-0 home win over Fiorentina.

'Getting off to such a good start by scoring a hat-trick was crucial,' he said. 'As a team we were strong and connected, and I immediately had a very good feeling. We can build on moments like these and do something special. Paulo and I clicked immediately.'

When Dybala’s constant niggles strike, new signing Rodrigo Mora has proved more than an adequate stand-in, helping to spearhead Roma’s title charge.

Gasperini has built a career on finding diamonds in the dirt. Alejandro ‘Papu’ Gómez, Josip Ilicic and Ademola Lookman all owe him a debt of gratitude.

Malen is not the only one from the Premier League’s discard pile to find new life in Serie A. Romelu Lukaku, Gianluca Scamacca, Scott McTominay and Rasmus Hojlund have all thrived there.

Even Tottenham flop Kolo Muani enjoyed an excellent six months in his first spell in Italy.

 It hasn’t always worked - Evan Ferguson and Leon Bailey both disappointed at Roma - but it certainly has for Malen. Villa, meanwhile, can only watch. The sale allowed them to break roughly even, but it left supporters frustrated, with Duran, Moussa Diaby and Jacob Ramsey also sold in recent years.

It came as the club worked within the Premier League’s financial constraints.

Now Roma throw down the gauntlet at Old Trafford, and it could turn from bad to ugly for United.

'I don't think so much about the idol I'm becoming for the fans, I just want to score a lot of goals,' Malen said a few weeks ago. 'We have team goals to achieve and I'm focused on that.' 

Malen’s eyes should light up against a volatile defence. A big night would push him further up the race for 2026-27’s top scorer and show English football the talent it only glimpsed.