Jose Mourinho to hold showdown talks with Zlatan Ibrahimovic over his Manchester United future this week
The United boss is confident the Swedish striker WILL remain at Old Trafford
JOSE Mourinho will sit down with Zlatan Ibrahimovic to discuss his Manchester United future this week.
The United boss is confident the Swedish striker WILL remain at Old Trafford for another 12 months.
There is interest in the 35-year-old from the MLS as well as the mega-rich Chinese Super League.
But the Red Devils want assurances over the ex-PSG forward’s future as they plan their summer budget.
The club want to know how much they can afford as they push to sign £80m-rated Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann.
A United source revealed: “Jose and Zlatan are expected to sit down in the next few days to find out intentions on both sides.
“Jose is very confident he will stay for another year, but the interest from abroad is worrying the powers that be.
“The budgets are already being set and the pencil pushers want to know what money is going into what pot.
“They want to put it to bed and he know there is enough respect between Jose and the player to now lay cards on the table.”
Mourinho has already planned his summer spending after drawing up a list of targets including French ace Griezmann.
Ibrahimovic – who joined from PSG in the summer on a free – is thought to be happy in Manchester.
His family are settled in the area, and his children are training with United’s academy once a week.
And he revealed after Manchester United’s 2-0 win over Watford at the weekend he had already activated his 12-month extension clause.
The former Barcelona striker said: “The option is already fulfilled, but there’s nothing done yet.
“From my side, we’ll wait and see. Let’s see what happens. It’s a good atmosphere.”
Ibrahimovic is the joint third top scorer in the Premier League this season with 15 goals.