Dundee United boss Jim Goodwin has explained why the club made the unexpected decision to sell former Arsenal youth striker Nikolaj Moller earlier this month.
Photo by Paul Harding/Getty Images
Arsenal academy striker Nikolaj Moller left the club for FC St. Gallen in 2023, but he returned to the United Kingdom last summer, signing on a permanent deal with Dundee United in Scotland.
20 appearances later, Moller was on the move again last week, signing for Norwegian top-flight side Sandefjord. The fee was reported to be in the region of £700,000, plus add-ons.
Dundee United boss Jim Goodwin has since explained the transfer, admitting it wasn’t a sale they’d been planning or expecting to make.
Photo via DundeeUnitedFC.co.uk
“The (Nikolaj) Moller transfer was a bit out of the blue,” Goodwin conceded. “We hadn’t really intended on anybody going out at that point.
“But it was a substantial offer put on the table for a player that we signed for nothing in the summer.
“We’ve got a player trading model that we’re trying to implement, and I think that’s a great bit of business from the club.
“It weakens us slightly at the top end of the pitch, in terms of the options that we have available to us – but it’ll certainly give more opportunities now to young Owen Stirton.”
Photo via FCDenBosch.nl
Moller scored one goal and assisted two more for Dundee United, and he’ll now have a bit of a break before Sandefjord return to competitive action on March 15th.
The 23-year-old striker is still yet to match the form he showed with the Arsenal u23s in the senior game. The player notched 10 goals and assists in 18 Premier League 2 appearances, but he’s yet to hit double figures for goal contributions with any of his subsequent clubs.
The former Sweden u20 international will hope his three-year deal in Norway allows him to properly find his feet in the professional game now.