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Manchester United’s Juan Mata is being linked with a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia.
Now 32, the Spanish midfielder does not figure in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s plans at all, having fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford. He has yet to be included in the squad for any of their Premier League games this season.
He is now in the final year of his contract, having signed a 12-month extension to his current deal in the summer, a customary move to protect the valuation of one of their players.
Despite that, Mata and his representatives are hopeful that United will agree to release him early to go and take up the offer.
The unnamed Saudi club are reported to have offered him a salary of £11.5 million a year to go and play for them.
Negotiations are yet to begin, but United are unlikely to stand in Mata’s way.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.