Manchester United plan to keep Edinson Cavani at Old Trafford for the 2021-22 season by offering the striker a wage increase of £50,000, according to reports.
The Uruguayan has cemented himself as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first-choice striker during the second half of the 2020-21 campaign, playing a pivotal goalscoring role both domestically and in Europe – most notably in the Europa League semi-final tie with AS Roma, against whom he scored four goals over two legs.
United do not have the option to extend the 12-month deal Cavani signed last summer, and it has been generally assumed the 34-year-old would return to South America this summer.
However, Cavani can choose to add another year to his current deal, and according to The Sun, United plan to give the 34-year-old extra incentive to remain in Manchester by offering him an extra £50,000 a week.
Cavani took a 35 percent pay cut to join United following a fallow year with Paris Saint-Germain, but the last few months have reminded the entire world of his immense value. Solskjaer is hopeful of securing an agreement with the Uruguay veteran, who seems to be thoroughly enjoying playing with Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes at this moment in time.
His family, however, is said to play an influential role in Cavani’s decision-making. Reports earlier in the season indicated that Cavani was not enjoying life in Manchester during a lockdown, his family thousands of miles away. Which is fair enough. It is not the first time a South American has been horrified by the city’s lack of good food and warm weather.
So perhaps the best way to keep Cavani at Old Trafford is not through pay rises or adding Jadon Sancho to the roster; maybe the real route to the man’s heart is to hook him up with some truly high-quality steak and morcilla sausage, as is the norm in his native Uruguay.
