Manchester United have reached agreement with Shanghai Greenland Shenhua to extend the loan deal for Odion Ighalo.
The Nigerian striker’s stay was initially due to end on 31 May but he will now remain with the Reds until 31 January 2021, enabling him to build on an impressive start to life with the club he supported as a boy.
Ighalo’s tally of four goals in eight appearances so far includes at least one strike in each of his three starts – against Club Brugge, Derby County (2) and LASK.
Today’s confirmation is a timely boost for United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, as he continues to prepare his squad for this month’s resumption of competitive football.
The Premier League’s proposed return date is 17 June and the Emirates FA Cup quarter-finals have been lined up for the weekend of 27 and 28 June. However, the actual fixtures are still to be finalised and ManUtd.com will publish all the details of United’s rescheduled games in due course.
Ighalo will now hope to pick up from where he left off, after winning United’s Goal of the Month award for March with a stunning strike in our last match, the impressive 5-0 victory over Austrian club LASK in the Europa League.
That last-16, first-leg game at Linzer Stadion on Thursday 12 March was a sign of things to come, as it was played behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That will also be the case for all remaining fixtures in 2019/20.
Solskjaer discussed the outlook for Ighalo’s loan deal last week, when he appeared as a special guest on MUTV Group Chat.
The manager said: “They [Shanghai Greenland Shenhua] have been great towards us, allowing him to play for his dream club. It’s been a dream for him and hopefully he can finish what he started and win a trophy with us.”
