Inter Milan winger Ivan Perisic has refused to rule out a 2019 move away from the club, after admitting he rejected Manchester United during the summer.
The Croatian has featured prominently once again for the Nerazzurri this season, scoring two goals in 17 appearances across all competitions.
The 29-year-old enjoyed the best campaign of his career to date last year, as he helped Inter secure a Champions League spot in Serie A, while also playing a key role for Croatia during their run to the 2018 World Cup final in Russia.
Perisic has been a rumoured target for Man United for two years – as per the Daily Mirror – but the Premier League giants have seen their advances rebuffed up to now, most recently failing in a summer pursuit for the Inter star.
According to RMC Sport journalist Alessandro Rimi on Twitter, the Croatia international admits that he rejected the Red Devils in order to play as a focal point under Luciano Spalletti at the San Siro, but he still harbours hopes of a transfer in the near future.
“I wanted Manchester United and I was about to accept,” Perisic said.
“But I chose to stay because of Spalletti’s perseverance in wanting to play an important role, which are fundamental in football Future I would like to play in other countries I hope the Nerazzurri fans understand.”
#Perisic: “Mi voleva il Manchester United e stavo per accettare, ma ho scelto di restare per la perseveranza di Spalletti nel volermi dare un ruolo importante. Dettagli che nel calcio sono fondamentali. Futuro? Vorrei giocare in altri Paesi. Spero i tifosi nerazzurri capiscano”.
— Alessandro Rimi (@Ale_Rimi) November 30, 2018
Jose Mourinho’s United side have endured a miserable start to the 2018-19 campaign and sit 15 points behind Premier League leaders Manchester City in the table.
The English giants have lacked fluency in their build-up play and a clinical edge in the final third, despite having the likes of Anthony Martial, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez to spearhead the attack, with Paul Pogba pulling the strings in midfield.
For the Red Devils to get their season back on track, January reinforcements are essential and Perisic has the experience and quality to give Mourinho’s team a new spark going forward, which they sorely need in order to challenge for a place in the top four.
