Ten Hag U-turns on "perfect" Man Utd star involved in training ground bust-up
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag appears to have backtracked on Hannibal Mejbri and is willing to part ways with the midfielder despite a promising start to the season.
Hannibal has long been tipped as one of the next big things to emerge out of the United youth set-up, which is where he has played for the majority of his stay in Manchester since joining from Monaco in 2017. The opening exchanges of this season saw the Tunisia international earn some first-team minutes, even netting his first Premier League goal during the 3-1 home defeat by Brighton.
Many members of the United faithful had expected this campaign to be Hannibal's breakout season after such a bright start, which in itself was a surprise. Long before a ball had been kicked, it looked like he could be on his way out of the club due to a training ground bust-up just before Ten Hag arrived with Alex Telles, now of Saudi outfit Al Nassr.
After a spell on loan at Birmingham during Ten Hag's debut campaign, it looked like the Dutchman had deemed Hannibal surplus to requirements, keen to avoid the drama he'd been told about regarding the midfielder's fight with Telles. However, a string of bright displays turned the tide and the Red Devils boss even described Hannibal's performance away at Burnley as "perfect".
With that being said, it now appears Ten Hag has U-turned once again and is now willing to ship Hannibal off on another loan spell, this time with Spanish outfit Sevilla for the remainder of the current campaign.
Marcel Sabitzer completes Man Utd transfer after last-minute deadline day dash
The deal is believed to have an option to buy clause inserted into it, which would suggest United are hardly losing sleep over the idea of losing Hannibal permanently. The Red Devils are expected to pocket a decent fee if Sevilla do tie Hannibal to a permanent deal come the summer.
The La Liga side were keeping tabs on the Tunisian's situation in the summer and he came close to swapping Manchester for sunny Spain back then. However, injuries to a number of key United midfielders presented Hannibal with a chance to stake his claim for a regular spot in the starting line-up.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Should United keep Hannibal at Old Trafford? Comment below
Hannibal Mejbri wants to leave Manchester United this month (Getty Images)Fast forward five months and the landscape has changed, Hannibal is now keen on an exit. So much so in fact, the 20-year-old has not travelled with the Tunisia national team for the Africa Cup of Nations as he wants to get a clearer picture of his club future.
Hannibal would not be the first talent to make the loan switch from United to Sevilla. Anthony Martial made the same move mid-way through the 2021/22 season, while Hannibal's training ground bust-up opponent Telles followed suit the campaign after.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
