Even Fernando Torres wasn ’ t relegated to the reserves . But for £250,000-per-week Radamel Falcao – perhaps the most handsomely-rewarded second-string striker in history – this was the ultimate indignity . Does he feel an injustice , angry with Louis van Gaal for such a degrading demotion ? Or is there an acceptance that his powers have faded ? In fact , they ’ ve gone out like a light . Radamal Falcao has scored just four goals since arriving at Manchester United . His latest run out was for the Under 21s as they faced Tottenham on Tuesday night . At least with fellow £50million flop Torres his decline was something of a slow burn , occasionally illuminated by a flicker of glories past . Sadly , for Falcao , there is no sign of him emerging from the darkness at Old Trafford . An unused substitute as Manchester United struggled for a goal ( Falcao has scored more than 200 in his career ) during their 2-1 defeat by Arsenal in Monday ’ s FA Cup quarter-final , the Colombian was back at the Theatre of Nightmares 24 hours later for an Under 21 fixture against Tottenham . He wasn ’ t there to cheer on the club ’ s next generation , he was lining up alongside them . United insist it was a fitness exercise . But fitness is allied to form , and Falcao certainly does n't boast the latter right now . Falcao fluffed his lines and missed several chances during a win over QPR back in January . The striker has spent plenty of time warming the bench at Old Trafford . Louis van Gaal must decide whether to take up the option to buy Falcao at the end of his loan spell . He failed to score against Spurs , fluffed one chance and was then withdrawn – a synopsis which could well be applied to the majority of his outings since his £6m loan move from Monaco . The beauty of that arrangement – and it ’ s something of an ugly truth – is that United are not committed to making his stay permanent and there is zero chance of them doing so after his failure to impact , four goals from 19 appearances his sorry return . Compare that with the 70 strikes from 91 matches for Atletico Madrid and his demise is given some numerical context . Falcao drew a blank against League One Preston in the FA Cup last month . He also struggled against Cambridge from League Two in the previous round . Celebrations have been few and far between for Falcao , pictured here after scoring against Leicester . River Plate . 2005-06 - Games 11 Goals 7 . 2006-07 - Games 20 Goals 3 . 2007-08 Games 39 Goals 19 . 2008-09 Games 35 Goals 16 . Porto . 2009-10 Games 43 Goals 34 . 2010-11 Games 42 Goals 38 . 2011-12 Games 2 Goals 0 . Atletico Madrid . 2011-12 Games 50 Goals 36 . 2012-13 Games 41 Goals 34 . Monaco . 2013-14 Games 19 Goals 11 . 2014-15 Games 3 Goals 2 . Manchester United . 2014-15 Games 19 Goals 4 . It was , of course , in the colours of Atletico that Falcao smashed a devastating hat-trick past Chelsea in the European Super Cup of 2012 . Every tribute in the wake of that demolition job determined that Falcao was ready-made for the Premier League – pace , power , potency , he had the lot . Even his pre-Madrid existence supported the assertion that he was the continent ’ s most feared goal-getter . There were 72 goals from just 87 games at Porto , winning with them a Portuguese title , cup and Europa League , a prize he defended the following season in Spain . His spells at Porto and Atletico were bookended by River Plate and Monaco , where again his ratio was as good as one-in-two . But it was that move to Monaco which proved fateful in the loss of Europe ’ s finest front man . With a transfer fee of £52m and salary of around £15m , there were obvious accusations – defended by Falcao – behind his motivation . However , it was the knee injury suffered in January of last year which robbed him of a place at the World Cup and , on the evidence of this season , a whole lot more than a mere ticket to Brazil . Falcao was on holiday during the World Cup as he missed out following a long injury lay-off . Falcao scored goals for fun during his days as an Atletico Madrid player . He won the Europa league with Porto in 2011 and again with Atletico the following year . Falcao is still a Monaco player having signed for Manchester United on a season-long loan . Gone are the razor-sharp reactions of body and mind . Gone is the swagger , the confidence , the belief that he is the best . Sound familiar ? Over four , long years at Chelsea we witnessed the regression of Torres . In the end he left having scored just 20 league goals in 110 games . Falcao will be lucky if he leaves United with 20 league appearances , let alone goals . Torres , of course , now resides back at Atletico , his connection with the club affording him a second chance . At 29 and with his best days very much behind him , perhaps a similar fate awaits Falcao .
† Falcao has scored 14 goals since arriving at Old palace . Manchester clubs are unlikely to take up the option to buy him . He was selected to play for the Under 21s against Spurs on Tuesday . Falcao holds a blank for the second string . His fall from the top is the most spectacular since Fernando Torres . CLICK HERE for all the latest Manchester league players .