Odion Ighalo – Ready to Leave Manchester United

On-loan Manchester United striker, Odion Ighalo, looks set to leave Old Trafford by the end of the week. The forward is expected to return to his Chinese club, Shanghai Shenhua, when his loan spell comes to an end on May 31^st. Soccer odds 1×2 are also stopping at that point.

A Desperate Move for Bolstering Attack

When the 30-year-old striker from Nigeria, Ighalo, signed for United on the last day of the January window he was supposed to play for the Red Devils throughout the second half of the 2019-2020 season. However, with the pandemic putting a stop to every sports activity, Ighalo looks increasing unlikely to finish the campaign.

He was taken on loan as a desperate attempt to boost the attack power of Manchester United, with the hopes of bringing the team back on track following a disappointing first half to the season. With Marcus Rashford getting injured and Anthony Martial being out of touch, they needed nothing short of a miracle.

Returning by the End of the Week

Ighalo surprised a lot of people by making an immediate impact following his loan move in January and the striker had scored four goals in five games – including a superb volley during a 5-0 victory over Lask in the Europa League on March 12th – before football came to an abrupt halt. Those that were placing soccer bets at that time were surely confident that Ighalo would be a game-changer.

Understandably, Manchester United wanted to extend Ighalo’s stay beyond the initial agreed date but their request has so far been denied. Shanghai Greenland Shenhua are not willing to feed the striker’s wish off finishing the Premier League campaign at the Old Trafford.

Premier League football is set to return in June after the suspension caused by the pandemic crisis comes to an end and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants to count on Ighalo during the final games. But discussions between Ighalo’s parent club and Man Utd have stalled. With no news coming from the other end, the player will likely have to return to Shenhua when his loan ends at the weekend.

A Positive Experience

Regardless of how short it proved to be, this season was a good experience for the Nigerian. He was in good shape and form, he defied the soccer betting odds by proving to be a real hit at Old Trafford, and he may yet get his wish to return to see out the season.