Nigerian forward Odion Ighalo will get to finish the 2019/20 Premier League season with Manchester United after all. The club announced on Monday that they have extended Ighalo’s loan and that the 30-year-old striker will remain with the team until January 2021.
Ighalo joined Manchester United on loan in January from Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua. He was supposed to finish the season with United and return to China on May 31st, but the Premier League suspension in March made this a complicated business.
Still, the two clubs managed to agree to a deal that allows Ighalo to remain in England and see out the 2019/20 season, which is set to resume in mid-June. According to reports, the new agreement doesn’t give Man Utd an option to keep the striker on a permanent basis while Shanghai is set to receive $4 million for the loan.
“They [Shanghai Greenland Shenhua] have been great towards us, allowing him to play for his dream club,” said United’s boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. “It’s been a dream for him and hopefully he can finish what he started and win a trophy with us.”
Odion Ighalo’s arrival at Manchester United was met with skepticism, with many believing that the signing was rushed and made after the club exhausted all other options. However, Ighalo soon proved everyone wrong as he put some head-turning performances once he settled down. In eight matches with United, he scored four goals.
