Premier League Rumors: Ighalo Could Aim For Permanent Spot In United

Odion Ighalo will stay with Manchester United until January 2021 after the Red Devils and Shanghai Shenhua concluded negotiations regarding his contract.

However, the new term is seen as more like a lifeline for the Nigerian striker. It remains that he still needs to prove he deserves to be at Old Trafford, despite his fine showing in eight games where he scored four goals for United.

In a previous report, it was mentioned how Ighalo was able to get a new lease on life to continue living his boyhood dream. This comes weeks after word came out that the 30-year-old Nigerian may no longer be around when the league restarts later this month.

The Red Devils managed to hold talks with Shanghai Shenhua on a new deal. It also made no sense for Ighalo to return to China with lockdown restrictions in place. Even if he had returned, the Nigerian may not make it in time to rejoin the team.

In that same post, it was also explained how Ighalo was facing an entirely new challenge. While he did impress Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when he arrived in January, he will now have to prove that he can play alongside regular stars. It is believed that Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba could be returning to action as well once football action resumes later this month. Ighalo will need to play better if he is to keep his role and playing time with the regular stars back in harness. And it appears former Red Devil Dimitar Berbatov agrees with that notion, challenging Ighalo to do better and seek a permanent move to Old Trafford.

"Now, Ighalo has a massive challenge ahead of him to prove that it was the right decision from the club. Now that he's staying until January 2021, why not go out there and show the club why he should stay for even longer?" Berbatov said in an interview with Betfair.

Getting a new opportunity, it is likely one of the things Ighalo has in mind. It won't be easy but showing top management that he deserves to stay with them will be added motivation.

Incidentally, Shanghai Shenhua did include an option to buy in the new deal. If United feels that Ighalo is worth keeping, all they need to do is pay the $25 million fee set by the Chinese club.