Man Utd stances on three first-team exits revealed after Ronaldo bombshell
What Man Utd plan to do with three senior first-team stars following the blockbuster Cristiano Ronaldo announcement has been revealed.
Ronaldo, 36, is on course to call Old Trafford his home once more. Juventus have reportedly accepted an initial €15m bid prior to add-ons for his services. Once officially confirmed, Ronaldo will reportedly pocket £480,000-per-week.
Several members of the current Man Utd first-team reacted exactly how you might have expected on social media. In typical fashion, however, Roy Keane served up a more blunt response.
Ronaldo’s arrival will likely see him installed as the first-choice centre-forward. Indeed, Gary Neville declared the goal machine will be deployed at the spearhead of the attack.
That will likely demote Edinson Cavani to a bench role. And with Mason Greenwood’s only hope of making the starting eleven now by occupying a wide berth, Jesse Lingard’s chances of featuring regularly have also declined.
Ronaldo’s gargantuan salary could feasibly have a knock-on effect on the club’s decision over what to do with Paul Pogba.
But according to trusted source Fabrizio Romano, the futures of Cavani and Pogba are secure.
Romano tweeted Man Utd are ‘100 percent’ committed to keeping the Uruguayan despite Ronaldo’s impending arrival. Furthermore, the player himself is ‘absolutely not considering’ a premature exit.
Pogba is also deemed to be ‘staying’ and was ‘never involved’ in any proposal to Juventus regarding Ronaldo’s move.
The pair’s futures are secure, though there appears to be less certainty regarding Lingard.
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Lingard future the least certain
Speaking on Sky Sports News, transfer specialist Dharmesh Sheth firstly acknowledged Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has given no indication Lingard will be sold. The 28-year-old remains on West Ham’s radar after a sparkling loan stint last season.
However, Sheth believes Lingard is the most likely to depart of any of the club’s depth pieces in the forwards owing to his contract situation. Lingard is in the final year of his contract.
“Ole Gunnar Solskjaer spoke about Jesse Lingard in the same news conference and said he sees him as 100-per-cent a Manchester United player,” said Sheth.
“Everything Solskjaer has said about Lingard during this transfer window is that he expects him to be part of the plans, and he can still play a big part next season. He was in the squad against Southampton. Solskjaer said he played so well in pre-season, had it not been for Covid, he would have started the first game against Leeds.
“West Ham would be interested if he became available. Their line is that this is up to Manchester United. Whereas United could argue they haven’t been given anything to think about.
“Until an offer comes in, Lingard will stay. The complication comes in that he’s in the final year of his contract. If he doesn’t sign one in the next four days, he’s three months away from being able to sign a pre-contract agreement, or weigh up all his options and leave for free next summer.
“It happened late in the last window. It could be one of those situations where Solskjaer has Ronaldo in his ranks and looks at who he could let go.”
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