Bharath Rammr
Manchester United have reportedly been working on extending Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s stay at Old Trafford by activating the one-year option on his contract. The striker moved from Paris St Germain in the summer on a free transfer. He signed a one-year contract with the option of another year depending on his campaign with the club. So far, he has proven to be a massive hit at Old Trafford after scoring 12 goals in 17 league matches so far. Ibrahimovic has already stated his desire to remain at Old Trafford for the next season.
In order to do so, the player will have to turn down offers from Chinese and MLS clubs. These, undoubtedly, will be massive offers and Ibrahimovic appears to have chosen the titles and glory over money. Jose Mourinho says that the contract extension has not been completed yet, but he has no qualms with the issue considering that everyone connected with the deal seemed to be on the same wavelength as of now. He was quoted by the Daily Express when asked about whether Zlatan’s clause has been activated; he said:
“Not yet [signed] but it’s activated in his brain and also in my decisions, and it’s activated also in the owners and the board, so no problem.
“I’m not really surprised [by Ibrahimovic’s form] because he’s a very intelligent guy and he’s a very proud man. When such a guy decided to come I was completely decided he was ready and he is ready for more next season and he will be here again.”
Ibra has missed only one league match and it was due to suspension. More importantly, the Swede has been able to play almost the full 90 minutes in every game. The striker recently said that he may be 35, but he has the mentality of a 20-year-old and this enables him to play at the best possible condition even now. Regarded as one of the greatest strikers in the last few decades, Ibrahimovic has won the league title for the last nine out of 10 campaigns with four different clubs.
Ibrahimovic looks set to miss out on the league title for this campaign, but the club have received numerous positive aspects from the player for the next campaign. United are expected to go on a spending spree once again with the club already lining up Victor Lindelof as the first major acquisition of January.
Jose Mourinho has praised the attitude of Ibrahimovic on numerous occasions this season. He believes that Ibrahimovic is a huge motivation to the team on and off the field. There have been times this season when he has made himself available to the squad even when he was given a day off. The Swedish striker performed this gesture in order to help the team out during a difficult period.
