With their managerial situation still up in the air, Manchester United were never going to splash the cash in January, but that didn’t stop them from trying to recruit some talent for their youth teams.
One of the main stories was that of Hannibal Mejbri, a 16-year-old midfielder currently at Monaco, for whom the Red Devils had made an offer.
However, the principality side put their foot down, and decided to stand in the way of their starlet’s exit, much to the displeasure of the player’s father, who absolutely wants his son to leave.
Speaking to Le Parisien on Thursday, Lofti Mejbri explained the situation, claiming ‘serious things’ went on behind the scenes, which were ‘very difficult to live through’ for Hannibal and the rest of his family.
Claiming their relationship with Monaco is now ‘completely destroyed’, the youngster’s father believes it’ll be hard to ‘continue to work with people when there’s such a lack of trust’.
He continued: “Our latest talks with the club didn’t reassure us. It’s a problem between them and us. It isn’t a question of money nor is it because there’s other offers. I’m not the one who approached other clubs for Hannibal.
“He’s been courted by big European clubs for ages. The destination isn’t important. Our decision is taken, we want to leave Monaco, that’s it. It was all going well for Hannibal with the U17s, but now he’s really affected by all this. I hope Monaco will let him leave. It’s best for all involved. If it isn’t now, then in the summer.”
Of course, until the Ligue 1 side let him leave or his contract runs out, there’s not a lot Hannibal and his family can do.
That’s not ideal for Manchester United’s, whose offer is confirmed by Le Parisien in the same article, but perhaps they’ll have better luck in the summer?
