Jose Mourinho’s is about to wield the axe at Manchester United.
The Daily Mail claims that up to seven high-profile international players at United will be put up for sale this summer.
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Bastian Schweinsteiger, Marcos Rojo and Matteo Darmian are apparently surplus to requirements at Old Trafford, while Juan Mata, Adnan Januzaj, Ashley Young and Memphis Depay have all been told they won’t be regulars, per the report.
Mourinho has already added Eric Bailly, Henrik Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibramimovic to his squad this summer and is looking to trim his wage bill considerably to tidy up the roster left behind by Louis Van Gaal.
Negotiations over Paul Pogba’s massive $130 million move from Juventus are said to be continuing behind-the-scenes and all of that adds up to a bloated squad at United.
What of the three highest profile players who are apparently up for sale? Well, we all know Mourinho’s thoughts on Mata.
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The Spanish playmaker, 28, was sold by Mourinho when he took over at Chelsea for his second spell in charge of the club. It was claimed Mata’s defensive abilities was the main reason Mourinho sold him to United and now it looks like the Spanish international could be on the outside looking in once again.
As for Schweinsteiger, 31, the German national team captain endured an injury hit first season at United last season and played 31 times, scoring twice. He was a key signing in Van Gaal’s era but now the veteran midfielder may be moved on, especially if Pogba does arrive.
Memphis’ struggles last season are well documented with the Dutch winger, 22, scoring just twice in the Premier League all season after his $40 million move from PSV Eindhoven. With Mkhitaryan arriving, plus the emergence of Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford last season, open slots in wide positions seem to be sparse in Mourinho’s squad.
That also spells bad news for Young and Januzaj, with the latter loaned out to Borussia Dortmund last season, while the full back position seems stacked too as Rojo and Darmian appear to be behind youngsters Luke Shaw and Timothy Fosu-Mensah in the pecking order.
Mata and Memphis could still fetch sizable transfer fees, while Schweinsteiger may be tough to move on given the fact that he’s reportedly on almost $200,000 per week at Old Trafford. Young, Januzaj, Darmian and Rojo may be hard to move on too, but loan deals seem likely if United picks up a chunk of their wages.
With Mourinho and his team heading back to Europe following the cancellation of their International Champions Cup friendly against Manchester City in China on Monday, the serious business of trimming down his squad and making tough decisions has already begun.
Winds of change are swirling around Old Trafford.
