Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney admitted he was unsure about the signing of Bryan Mbeumo in the summer but said his performances have convinced him he belongs at the club.
Mbeumo joined United in the summer from Brentford for a hefty fee upwards of £70 million ($94m).
The Cameroon international's brace against Brighton on Saturday took his goal tally to five in 10 appearances. He also opened the scoring for United at Anfield, in what was their first win at the venue since 2016.
"At Man United, he [Mbeumo] has had some really good chances in games as well -- he just hasn't always taken them. But I think his energy, his work rate, his desire ... that's what you need to be a Man United player," Rooney said on The Wayne Rooney show.
"And yeah, I did say I was a little bit unsure, but I think what he's shown is that he belongs there. Obviously, Cunha's come in, it's great to see him get his goal, but Mbeumo has been consistent with his performances and that's the main thing.
"If you're consistently getting into the right positions and getting chances, you'll score. What was it, 20 goals last season he scored for Brentford? And now he's started well again.
"When you're a forward, you enjoy scoring goals, and that feeling keeps going. That's why you see players go on streaks -- scoring eight, ten, eleven goals on the bounce -- and then sometimes they might go a few games without one.
"His confidence is very high at the minute, and hopefully that continues, because he's certainly been the best signing for Man United this season."
The win over Brighton also saw new signing Matheus Cunha open his account for the club. Despite the lack of goals, Cunha has been one of United's best performers this season and has imbued their attack with much-needed dynamism.
"You could see how much everyone was delighted for him -- the manager as well -- because that kind of thing can play on your mind," Rooney said.
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"We've seen it with Darwin Núñez at Liverpool too -- the longer it goes on, the harder it becomes. You lose that bit of confidence again. But getting that goal is massive for him because some of his performances have actually been really good.
"He's obviously missed a few games through injury, but you could see the delight when he scored. I've had it before where players really need that goal because they're going through a tough spell, and you just hope that it spurs them on.
"Hopefully now he can start showing what we saw from him at Wolves last year. I think he can kick on from this, get better, and start grabbing games by the scruff of the neck -- because that's what he's capable of. He's unpredictable at times, and that's what makes him such a threat."