Zlat’s your lot.
Or at least, that’s what we’re being told on Saturday morning.
Just days after it seemed Zlatan Ibrahimovic would be sticking around for another year at Old Trafford, it now seems the 35-year-old will not be offered an extension to his contract by Manchester United.
According to the Daily Express, United had intended to trigger a clause in the striker’s current deal – which expires at the end of June – allowing him to stay at the club for another year.
However, the knee injury he sustained during the Europa League meeting with Anderlecht appears to have changed things. After damaging ligaments, the Swede is not expected to return to action until January 2018. This point considered, sources close to the club have said that United believe it’s ‘financial madness’ to offer a player that is on a weekly wage of £367,000 an extended deal when he’s likely to miss half of next season.
The latest news on Ibrahimovic comes at the end of a week that began with United seeming near certain to sign Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann. However, it was reported on Thursday that United’s interest had cooled as they prioritised a striker. Later that day, Atleti were handed a transfer ban and Griezmann appeared to use his social media channels to commit his future to the club.
With Ibrahimovic likely to be leaving the club and Wayne Rooney also being strongly linked with a departure, United are already being linked with a number of different number nines from across the continent.
You can expect to hear plenty more of United’s transfer activity in the summer gossip columns.
