Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has confirmed that Memphis Depay wants to leave the club. The 22-year-old signed for the club from PSV Eindhoven in the summer of 2015 for a fee of around £25m. Memphis arrived at Old Trafford with huge expectations and massive potential, perhaps more than he could’ve hoped to live up to. The winger was given the No.7 shirt which signalled the club’s ambitions – but a year and a half later it seems the Dutchman’s time is up, and Mourinho says the door is open for Memphis to leave.
“I have to say that in the past couple of months my decisions in relation to Memphis were influenced by the feelings and information that he would like to leave in January and that we were going to have a real offer that we would be willing to accept,” said Mourinho.
“That obviously influences me. If I know, if I have the feeling that a player is leaving – if I have to give chances and develop other players – then I go to Lingard, Mkhitaryan, Martial, the players I know 100 per cent who are going to stay with us. It is a position where we have more options.”
Memphis has started just one game for United this season, a 55-minute appearance in a League Cup tie at Northampton, and has managed just 20 minutes of game time in the Premier League. However Mourinho has denied that the player’s attitude is to blame for his lack of game time, admitting that the competition for places is too strong for Memphis.
“He was not playing last season,” added Mourinho. “It was not that last season he was playing phenomenally and this season he is not playing at all. That’s not the situation.”
“He’s a very good professional, is the only thing I can say. I know the public image is always influenced by some details of their private lives but the reality is that he is a very good professional, a very good boy.”
“He has a high level of education, super polite, super professional, and works really hard. But it’s a position where I have Martial, Mkhitaryan, Mata, Lingard, plus Rooney and Rashford who can also play in this position.”
“So we have six, seven players. When I have the feeling and information that the player probably has a big chance to leave then I have to care more about the others.”
“But if you arrive in January and nothing happens – and we have lots of matches – then if he is going to be my player until the end of the season I will help him and he will be useful for us.”
[Quotes via Sky Sports]