ODION IGHALO has revealed he told his agent he “didn’t care” he had to take a huge pay cut to seal a shock move to Manchester United.
The former Watford striker arrived from China at the end of last week after completing a dramatic 5am move on deadline day.
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His switch has raised eyebrows but the 30-year-old Nigerian has explained it was his dream to play for the Old Trafford club.
And he told the club’s official website that although it was a frantic dash to seal the deal, he could not be happier – even though it meant missing out on some of the cash he was getting at Shanghai Shenhua.
He said: “It was very dramatic. My agent called me the day before and said Man United. I would love to go. A few other clubs had shown interest, I said please, just pick United, if it’s going to be possible.
“At 11pm in Shanghai, my agent called me [to say] that United want to do the deal, so I woke up that night and started looking for a translator to go to the directors’ room and hit his door.
“I said, ‘My agent wants to speak to you, United are coming for me, you have to make this happen’.
“So they started talking and discussing. I didn’t sleep throughout that night, because it was going to end at 7am, Shanghai time, and the transfer [window] is going to close.
“From 11pm, there was paperwork, negotiating… so we are talking and other teams are calling, wanting me, but I told my agent that this is what I want. I want to come here.
“He said you’re going to get a pay-cut to go to United. I said I don’t care. Make this deal happen.
“I want to go to United. I don’t care how much is the pay-cut, I know that, make it happen.
“So the director and everybody didn’t know what to say anymore, because I had already made up my mind, so my agent started putting it in order, and, at 5am, we finished.
“My agent said he’d forwarded all the papers to United, they will confirm for me if everything is OK. I think, around 5am-6am, he said everything is okay, it’s done. I was excited.
“I called my mum and she was happy, crying.
“It was dramatic, I didn’t sleep through. I was very happy that finally we got the deal done.”
