Manchester United are reportedly ready to offer a fresh, £150,000-a-week deal to Ander Herrera in order to ward off interest from Barcelona.
Jose Mourinho sees Herrera as a key player at Old Trafford and wants to reward him for an outstanding 2016-17 campaign but also to send the signal to the potential suitors that he’s not for sale. The 27-year-old had been linked with Barcelona in recent weeks, as the Blaugrana’s new manager Ernesto Valverde would like to reunite with the midfielder. Herrera worked under Valverde at Bilbao but moved to Man United in 2014 for £30 million, and despite the early struggles to settle in, Herrera became an integral part of the Red Devils last season.
His current salary is £100,000 per week and Mourinho is prepared to offer Ander a new deal which will keep him at Old Trafford until 2021. Although the player may consider to team up with Valverde again, he drastically improved under Mourinho the last term as he made his international debut for Spain and was voted United’s Player of the Year.
Herrera is seen as a probable new captain who will succeed Michael Carrick at the end of the upcoming season and his partnership with Paul Pogba in the midfield is great as well, so he certainly isn’t unhappy with the current situation at the club. He recorded two goals and seven assists in the 2016-17.
The relationship with Mourinho is much better than the one he had with Louis van Gaal, and Herrera will likely accept the new contract and stay at the club for many years to come. It is not easy to reject Barcelona’s approach, but it seems that the Spaniard is happy and his contribution in both defense and attack is quite valuable, so Mourinho will do everything in his power to keep him at Old Trafford.
Can we just hurry up and sign Sanchez