Ruben Amorim wasn’t the Manchester United manager when Adrien Rabiot’s move collapsed but the midfielder’s reason for the same is a straight challenge for the manager.
Adrien Rabiot was quickly getting into the territory of Nicolas Gaitan and Wesley Sneijder when it came to being forever linked to Man Utd but never actually completing the move.
It started in Erik ten Hag’s first season at Old Trafford, and kept popping up in the rumour mill all the way till last summer when Rabiot finally joined Marseille.
Rabiot has now revealed the true reason why multiple approaches from United failed and it doesn’t reflect well on the club.
Photo by Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Photo by Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Adrien Rabiot on why Man Utd transfer didn’t happen
Ever since he was at Juventus and noises coming out of his camp were that he was ready for a move, United have been right in the mix.
Rabiot’s mixture of physicality and technical excellence made him the perfect midfielder for a top Premier League side, and Ten Hag was crying out for reinforcements in the middle.
That became even truer when he was available on a free transfer after leaving Juventus, with United looking like a no-brainer destination for him, only for him to join Marseille instead.
In an interview with The Athletic, Rabiot revealed the damning reason why he didn’t consider the move despite being in talks with United multiple times.
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He said: “It really could have happened two years ago, when I was coming to the end of my contract at Juventus and I finally decided to extend by a year. We had great talks, and there were written offers. But in the end, it didn’t happen.
“Last year as well, when I was free, they came back in again. I had good talks with them again. But it’s true that it was a bit tricky.
“The situation they’re in at the moment… I felt a bit of reticence about whether United were going to be able to go on and achieve great things. Because they’re in a bit of a hole at the moment.”
Rabiot’s reason is a challenge for Ruben Amorim
It is a bullet dodged that Rabiot never joined United because that reasoning speaks of a player who didn’t want to lead a revival, but rather wanted to join a comfortable place.
Amorim wouldn’t have liked to have such a player at the club as he only wants the most committed professionals, as evidenced by his message to United transfer targets.
Nonetheless, his words should act as the spark for everyone at United to get things right and contend for top titles again because the club shouldn’t be disrespected like that.
If Rabiot looks at United in five years and thinks he should have joined when there was a chance, Amorim will have succeeded in correcting the narrative around the club.
That’s the challenge that has been laid bare by Rabiot’s reasoning.