Alex Ferguson on Tuesday compared Robin van Persie to Manchester United legend Eric Cantona, the Frenchman who led the Red Devils to four Premier League and two FA Cup titles during his five-year spell at the club between 1992-1997. Like Cantona, who arrived at Old Trafford in 1992 from then-English champion Leeds United, van Persie has made an immediate impact since his $39 million transfer from Arsenal, scoring 15 goals in 21 appearances.

"He has got a similar profile to Eric in terms of age and maturity," Ferguson said of van Persie in an interview with Eurosport. "He had a great spell at Arsenal so there is no issue with him needing to settle into the Premier League. He came from one big club to another big club and he is an established international. All these things in his profile suited us perfectly."

Just like Cantona, Ferguson believes van Persie makes the players around him better. "I think it is happening," the Scot said. "The attacking aspect of our game has definitely improved and of course he has weighed in with 15 goals so far. Chicharito [Javier Hernandez] has got nine goals, [Wayne] Rooney has eight and you only need to look at the number of goals we have scored around as a team, 43, which is quite a high amount for this time of year."