English footballing giant Manchester United on Saturday confirmed that midfielder Ander Herrera will leave the club this summer.
“There is red in my heart, I knew it from the first time I played here and in the moment that I first started to wear it. A club with thousands of fans that respect and remember all the players who give everything,” Herrera said in a video message posted by Manchester United’s Twitter handle.
A goodbye message from @AnderHerrera. 🔴 #MUFC pic.twitter.com/z56bmBwXa9
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) May 11, 2019
With Ander Herrera leaving Manchester United on a free transfer in the summer, 5 years after he arrived at the club from Athletic Bilbao, it makes one wonder if the Red Devils have a player like him in the side today.
The current situation at the club suggests that there is a lack of commitment from players and a lack of planning or clue from the people who run the club. In other words, there’s a lack of authority. There is no one man who can be a leader and stamp his authority. And the club is suffering from that.
And the lack of that will haunt United even more, with the departure of Herrera beckoning.
His bone to bone ferocity in tackles, undying hunger to cover every blade of grass when nothing was going right and the urge to pick the team up in gruelling times struck a chord with club’s fans. They’ve seen people like Eric Cantona, Roy Keane, David Beckham and Nemanja Vidic represent the club with immense passion and desire. It was no wonder that Herrera became a fans’ favorite, reminding them of Keane.
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Leaving for free, Herrera had reportedly asked for a wage of around 200k pounds a week. United had refused to pay that, despite handing new contracts to Phil Jones, Ashley Young and Chris Smalling. Herrera earns 75k pounds a week in his new contract and the authority less club United are, they let his situation get tense and tense till the climax. There are speculations that the footballer can be seen joining the Paris Saint-German (PSG) club.
Herrera typifies everything Manchester United used to be about- about passion, character, fire, the undying never say die attitude. He is everything the club should have today but sadly lacks.
“I felt special when I heard my name chanted, I felt proud when the fans decided I was part of this incredible history. Every time I represented this club in wins and losses even when I couldn’t help from the grass. I understood what this club means. I am going to remember each of the almost 200 matches that I played in this jersey. Because playing for the greatest club in England has been a true honour. Thanks for these five amazing years,” he said.
Herrera had joined United in 2014 and with him, the team has won the FA Cup, EFL Club, and Europa League during his time at the club.
The Spanish midfielder will make his final appearance for the team against Cardiff City in the Premier League on Sunday, May 12.