Odion Ighalo has revealed he turned down Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham to join Manchester United in January 2020.
The announcement of Ighalo’s arrival at Old Trafford certainly raised eyebrows last year, but while the deal arguably had all of the hallmarks of a deadline day panic buy, the Nigerian soon endeared himself to the United faithful.
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Ighalo spent one year at United after his initial six-month loan from Shanghai Greenland Shenhua was extended and he made 23 appearances under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, scoring five goals and making one assist across that period.
Although not much was expected from Ighalo , he quickly became a fan favourite through his infectious, larger than life personality and he made it clear he was living a dream by playing for United.
Now, though, Ighalo has revealed that Jose Mourinho wanted to sign him at Tottenham when United enquired over his availability last January, but unsurprisingly, he explained that he rejected Spurs’ advances to join his ‘dream’ club.
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“When Tottenham heard that Manchester United were in talks with me, they started calling my agent because Harry Kane was injured then and they said Jose Mourinho wanted to speak to me,” Ighalo said.
“I am a man of principle, I got a pay cut going to Manchester United. Tottenham were ready to pay me all the wages I was earning in China, they were ready to pay a higher loan fee than Manchester United.
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“My director in Shanghai Shenhua was trying to force me to accept Tottenham Hotspur. I told my agent I didn’t care, that he should make the Manchester United deal happen if they are serious.”
Photo Credit: Getty
