Patrick Rees
With the speculation regarding a possible arrival of a central defender still in vigour, a recent report from the Daily Mail has suggested that Manchester United’s 31-year-old midfielder – Ashley Young – has asked Jose Mourinho to let him leave the club on loan.
The former Aston Villa winger was heavily used by Manchester United’s ex-boss Louis van Gaal and the reason being; the long-term injury of Luke Shaw. To fill the void, Young was slotted on to the left-back role and did a pretty decent job. But the scenario has changed as Mourinho now has almost three options for that spot – Blind, Darmian, and Shaw. Furthermore, the flanks are pretty crowded as well with as much as five players battling for just two spots.
Hence, the request is quite understandable as he still has a bit of fuel to burn, but surprisingly, Mourinho may not sanction this move. He has been sparingly used by the manager and his last Premier League start came back in November against Swansea and since then, he has been an in and out personnel for the side.
Another reason for Mourinho’s reluctance might be their participation in the Europa League and the FA cup. Manchester United are active in as much as four competitions this season and any injury scare will ruin the current blueprint, hence, a proper depth in the squad is an absolute necessity.
Furthermore, Young is still one of the most versatile players in the league, hence, his departure might cost United something at some point in the season. United have already sold Morgan Schneiderlin and Memphis Depay to Everton and Lyon respectively and Mourinho has clearly intended that he is not in any mood for further changes, yet, a subsequent interest from the Chinese outfit Shandong Luneng may tempt the Red Devils to consider selling him.
Mail has further claimed that West Ham, West Brom, Swansea, Crystal Palace and his old club Watford have registered their interest and the decision is now pending in Mourinho’s office.
Young has been a loyal servant for the club and even though his game time has reduced, his dressing room and off the pitch antiques have always cheered the fans. He may have stop scoring goals, but his versatile skill sets can still be used in crunch games. So, we feel Mourinho should keep him at least till the end of the season.
