Manchester United are “bracing themselves for defeat” in their efforts to persuade Marouane Fellaini to remain at Old Trafford, claims the Daily Mirror.
The 30-year-old Belgian midfielder is out of contract at the end of the season and Jose Mourinho has apparently been moving heaven and earth to try to convince the veteran playmaker to sign on for another term with the Red Devils.
But the Mirror says “hopes are fading” that Fellaini will pen a new deal and the club is increasingly resigned to his leaving on a free in May.
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Fellaini, who is currently out of action with a knee injury, is believed to want one final challenge elsewhere before hanging up his boots and the Mirror reckons that he “has suitors in Italy, Spain and Turkey”, who are all ready to offer him a lucrative deal.
Meanwhile, the Mirror also says that Mourinho is “keeping tabs” on Spanish defender Alvaro Odriozola. Currently plying his trade for Real Sociedad, Odriozola is highly regarded by Mourinho, who sees him as the ideal long-term replacement for Antonio Valencia.
United scouts have been impressed with what they’ve seen of the 22-year-old Odriozola this season, and the Mirror claims that a bid will be tabled with the Spanish side at the end of the season.
Mourinho is said to be ready to “offload full-back Matteo Darmian this summer” and while he still retains faith in Valencia, the 32-year-old may be in the penultimate season of his United career.
