Odion Ighalo's loan deal extended to January 2021!

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Frankly, this is some of the best news I have seen this week in the middle of the chaos going on around the world at the moment.

Odion Ighalo joined Manchester United on the final day of the January window in what seemed to be a rush and desperate attempt to sign a back-up striker to cover for the injured Marcus Rashford.

Manchester United at the time only had Anthony Martial and the teenager Mason Greenwood as back-up ahead of a very difficult run of games in the Premier League, the Europa League, and the FA cup. It would have been a massive drain on the team energies, risking injuries due to fatigue which would have been reminiscent of the previous season's series of draws and losses towards the end of the season.

It would seem Ole has studied his squad and their limits, so adding an extra body in the forward line would at the very least help to see out the remainder of the games.

That was pre-COVID.

Since football was interrupted, most clubs have benefited massively concerning injured players getting fit in readiness for the new season. One of those teams was Manchester United.

Both Marcus Rashford and Pogba who had been out on long-term injuries have recently got back to training and Ole has revealed that they might be ready for selection come mid-June.

Pogba particularly seems closest to returning at a time when the midfield has received a massive boost with the arrival of the magnificent Bruno Fernandes.

Manchester United fans, such as myself, are probably licking their lips at the prospect of having both Bruno and Pogba lining up alongside each other.

Rashford on the other hand also looks set to play but I would this Ole would most likely drip feed him in and monitor his physical reaction to contact. His was a severe career-ending injury and it would be irresponsible to throw him right in and risk aggravating the injury.

Odion Ighalo's role.

Manchester United's biggest problem on the pitch is not necessarily the lack of a striker as most pundits will have you believe. Fans who watch the team play every week will probably notice that the forward line is imbalanced.

The team heavily relies on the left side with Rashford than on the right. The club has lacked a descent Right Winger for years despite the signing of Daniel James who has been shoehorned into the position and performed admirably especially in the big games.

By keeping Ighalo on until January "with the option to buy" that eliminates the need to buy another back-up striker at a time they are severely lacking and also at a time clubs are suffering financially.

This opens up more funds for the long-term primary target, Jadon Sancho, who the club identified as the solution to balance out the forward line for the foreseeable future.

Odion Ighalo will provide a much-needed quality number 9 who can hold the ball up for the team to get up the pitch. Lukaku was meant to do that but he did not have a first touch. The ball bounced off him like a trampoline which ended up frustrating his teammates.

Ighalo might have been a desperate signing but my word, hasn't he rewarded the club's gamble with excellent performances.

One performance that sticks out to me was the Europa League goal against LASK right before football was suspended when he juggled a Bruno Fernandes dinked pass once..twice..thrice before he put his left foot through the ball past a stunned goalkeeper into the top right. Unfortunately, the game was behind closed doors. One can only imagine the roar that would have erupted from the stands as the ball hit the back of the net.

In conclusion...

The Premier League resumes on June 17th with Manchester City vs Arsenal, in what promises to be a cracker of a game.

The following week will be Spurs vs Manchester United, a very difficult match for both teams who have a fully fit squad to choose from. Jose Mourinho in particular will be incredibly happy to have Sissoko, Bergwijn, Son, and the talismanic Harry Kane back and available for selection.

Football cannot resume fast enough.



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7 comments
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What do you think about the possibility of Saul Niguez signing this summer?

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I saw his post about announcing his new club in three days but I think it is a sponsorship deal or something.
The chances this season are pretty low considering we are already going for Jadon Sancho who should be our most expensive acquisition this summer.
I would love him at United though.

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Generally speaking I really hope you don’t sign Sancho for the obvious reason that he’d be a great signing for you guys. At the same time I kind of want you to get him just to piss off City fans :-)

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From a very reliable ITK, I hate to dissapoint but they say Bellingham, Sancho deals are already agreed in principle. They say the Gomez contract is already done too. The Ighalo news was also announced 2 days prior the official reveal.

I wonder if Spurs will be signing anyone this window?

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