Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has revealed that winger Adnan Januzaj is included in his plans at Old Trafford, despite his loan move to Sunderland.
The 21-year-old reunited with his former manager David Moyes at the Stadium of Light temporarily after the Belgium international joined the Black Cats on a season-long loan deal on Friday.
Januzaj had a breakthrough season when Moyes was in charge at Old Trafford in the 2013-14 campaign. However, the former Everton manager was sacked from his post at United, just 10 months into his six year contract.
Since Moyes’ departure, the attacker has seen his first team opportunities limited under Louis van Gaal. In the first half of last season, Januzaj spent on loan at Borussia Dortmund.
However, Januzaj’s time at Signal Iduna Park was disappointing and Mourinho is looking to avoid that situation at Sunderland. United manager wanted to avoid a similar situation and that is why he allowed his player to develop under Moyes at the Stadium of Light.
“He fits in my plans which is why he’s on loan at a Premier League club. I want to give give him all the conditions to develop and to play well,” Mourinho said in his pre-match press conference on Friday, as quoted by United’s official website.
“He is in the right place with a manager that likes him a lot. Hopefully everything will go well for him because we want him back!”
Januzaj’s contract with United runs down in 2018 and has not been offered a new deal. He made a name for himself under Moyes when the latter was in charge at Old Trafford and will be reunited with the Scot once again for the 2016-17 season.
United will be hoping that Januzaj becomes a better player under Moyes at Sunderland and showcase his skills as to why he should be included in Mourinho’s first team for the next campaign. However, a failure from him to impress could bring an end to his time with the Premier League giants.
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