Up until very recently, Marouane Fellaini had looked set to leave Manchester United at the end of the year when his contract expires. United risked losing him on a free transfer, with rival clubs in the Premier League, as well as Italy and Turkey, potentially looking to sign the 30-year-old.
Then the situation made an about face; as talks resumed. Like a game of domino gaple, we’ve seen a few plot twists and turns, with some unpredictable developments. You can likely expect a couple more twists and turns before Fellaini’s future gets settled.
According to multiple outlets, Fellaini is looking to get more than just one additional year on his contract. That appears to be hold-up as of now, the Belgian’s demanding a multi-year extension.
The Daily Mail writes that: “United are reluctant to offer a player in his 30s more than one year plus the option of an additional 12 months. Fellaini wants a guaranteed two-year contract at the very least and, ideally, three.Both sides are optimistic that a compromise can be reached.”
Fellaini is and always has been a very polarizing player during his United tenure, but he’s certainly in the good graces of manager Jose Mourinho. The United boss definitely favors selecting Fellaini whenever he can, and he said the new contract extension is getting close to reaching completion.
“We are almost there but I can’t celebrate because almost is not enough,” Mourinho is quoted by the BBC.
“I want to see the white paper with the United crest and [executive vice-chairman] Ed Woodward and Marouane Fellaini’s signatures. I think a player that grabs the crest after scoring is telling clearly that he wants to stay. I want him to stay, the club wants him to stay, I think he will stay.”
“We are trying to think about our team, little touches, little replacements – a Michael Carrick replacement, this kind of situation – but until now I didn’t lose one second thinking about a Marouane replacement.”
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune company’s blogging community Chicago Now.
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