Nigerian striker Odion Ighalo is on the brink of Manchester United exit after the English Club failed to reach an agreement with Shanghai Shenhua to extend his loan deal.
The 30-year-old arrived at Old Trafford in January on a loan deal until the end of the season, with his short-term contract set to expire on May 30.
However, due to the coronavirus pandemic forcing the Premier League to take an enforced break, Ighalo’s deal which was until the end of the season is now due to expire next week.
Ole Gunner Solskjaer wants to keep Ighalo until the end of August when the season is now expected to finish, but Shanghai have refused to budge in negotiations and want him back to start preparations for their new season, according to The Mail.
As it stands, Ighalo, whose initial deal is due to expire at the end of the month, will leave Manchester and return to China, meaning he will the resumption of the Premier League.
🗞 Shanghai Shenhua have rejected #mufc’s requests to keep Odion Ighalo at Old Trafford for another three months and are demanding that the Nigerian striker rejoins them to prepare for the start of the delayed Chinese Super League season. #udlatest [Mail]
— UtdIndex (@UtdIndex) May 25, 2020
The Red Devils paid a £3 million loan fee to the Chinese club in January and also agreed to pay around £130,000 of Ighalo’s £400,000-a-week salary.
Ighalo has impressed at Old Trafford, scoring four goals in eight games and providing experienced back-up for Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford.
Manchester United are kicking on with training at Carrington ahead of the Premier League’s likely restart in June.
