Advertisement
Advertisement
Olympique Marseille will not trigger the buy option to sign Manchester loanee Eric Bailly on a permanent deal, according to reports.
This leaves the 29-year-old’s future in doubt, as it seems very unlikely that he would break into Erik ten Hag’s starting XI next season.
As a result, Bailly will be forced to leave Man Utd if he wants to play consistent minutes, despite his contract at Old Trafford being valid until 2024.
This is according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, who has confirmed that the defender will return to England at the end of the season.
Advertisement
On Twitter, he wrote: “Understand Olympique Marseille will not trigger the buy option to sign Eric Bailly on a permanent deal — he will return to Manchester United.
Advertisement
“Been told Bailly will be available on the market as Man United are prepared to let him go.”
Marseille clearly haven’t been wowed by Bailly’s performances this season, so it seems unlikely that he would be able to move ahead of the likes of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane at Man Utd.
Bailly was signed by Jose Mourinho for a fee of £30m in 2016, but he has never really lived up to expectations at Man Utd.
Advertisement
Overall, the Ivorian has made 113 appearances for the Red Devils, but, after the departure of Mourinho in 2018, he has failed to make a big impression on any manager since.
Last season, Bailly played a total of 217 Premier League minutes under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick, with the likes of Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof moving ahead of him in the pecking order.
Advertisement
Ten Hag ultimately decided to loan him out to Marseille last summer so he could try and regain some form, but once again, the centre-back has disappointed.
This season, Bailly has started just three league games for the French club.
Advertisement
He also picked up a seven-game suspension after making a horrendous tackle in a French Cup game against Hyeres, where Bailly planted his studs into Moussa N’Diaye’s ribs – hospitalising him.