According to reports in The Mirror, Manchester United are ready to admit defeat in their attempts to keep midfielder Marouane Fellaini at the club beyond this season.
What’s the word, then?
Well, the Belgium international’s contract at Old Trafford expires this summer and while manager Jose Mourinho had previously suggested that all parties wanted to reach an agreement for the 30-year-old to still be a United player next season, The Mirror says that the club’s hopes of keeping hold of him are fading.
The Mirror says that the Red Devils are increasingly resigned to losing the midfielder on a free, with the player not being short of options for a new start with suitors in Italy, Spain and Turkey.
How has Fellaini done this season?
The 30-year-old has struggled with knee problems throughout the campaign but he still had a small spell of games where he was a key man in the middle of the park, and there is no doubt that he is still useful at both ends of the pitch because of his height and strength.
The Belgian has scored four goals in 16 appearances in all competitions this term, while he netted a brace in the 4-0 win against Crystal Palace back in September.
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According to WhoScored.com, Fellaini has won 35 of the 53 aerial duels he has faced in 14 outings in the Premier League and Champions League during the current campaign.
How big a blow would it be to lose him?
It would actually be quite a big one despite him not always being a crowd favourite.
The Belgium international came under criticism on a regular basis in the early years of his Old Trafford career, but there is no doubt that he has improved and become a key player under the leadership of Mourinho, forming strong partnerships with the likes of Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic.
Could they still keep him?
The longer things drag on the more unlikely it seems that Fellaini will extend his stay at Old Trafford, and the links with Lazio’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic – who is in a similar mould to the 30-year-old – suggest that the Red Devils are already actively searching for his replacement.
