At this point of the season, it’s fair to say that Manchester United’s decision to loan Sofyan Amrabat from Fiorentina hasn’t really worked out, with many in Italy reporting the player will be heading back to Serie A at the end of the season.
The Morocco international hasn’t played anywhere near as much or as well as many had hoped, and with the deal to make the move permanent costing upwards of €20m, the Old Trafford side will very likely be moving on.
Corriere Fiorentino look at Amrabat’s situation at Manchester United, and explain his parent club are preparing for this scenario.
They recall how adulated the player was after the Qatar World Cup, having impressed everyone with his displays for his country, and his attempts to force a move to Barcelona that following January.
It didn’t work out, as he finished the season at Fiorentina before Manchester United came knocking late on in need of a defensive minded player to help out in midfield.
The 27-year-old wanted the move to Old Trafford, and eventually got it, with it being like a ‘dream come true’ for him.
However, everything that has happened since means this idyllic scenario is ‘becoming a nightmare’, with his latest performance a perfect example of how everything is going against him.
Coming off the bench against Manchester City, he ‘managed to be the worst on the pitch’ in the face of eight minutes, losing the ball to Rodri in front of his own box and effectively handing Erling Haaland the third goal.
This appears to have been the ‘fateful straw that broke the camel’s back’, and many Manchester United fans now want rid of him.
Now, what is becoming ‘more and more certain’ is his return to Fiorentina, who will find themselves with a player whose contract expires in 2025 (with an option for 2026) and an ‘inevitably collapsed valuation’.
No one really knows what will happen in the summer, but Corriere Fiorentino know for a fact his confidence is no longer the same, and the player is ‘lost in the Manchester fog’.
