Manchester United Transfer News: Nani Contract Extension a Step Back for Reds

In the interest of keeping the club within some form of financial stability, many a Manchester United fan will have been egging on Nani’s protracted sale to Juventus this summer.

The Portuguese winger is somewhat renowned for having bags of ability in his locker, but just not enough in terms of consistency when it comes to displaying that ability.

Earlier this summer, it emerged that the Serie A champions were perhaps interested in United’s fringe star and were close to tying up a deal. That would now seem highly unlikely after recent comments made by Juve sporting director, Giuseppe Marotta.

According to Goal.com’s Stephen Darwin, the Juventus representative commented on Nani’s status, saying: "He has renewed his contract with Manchester United and we never negotiated for him."

Doron Solomon, a Twitter voice on all things Manchester United, moved to back up such claims:

An injury-hit 2012-13 campaign restricted Nani to making just 19 starts across all competitions and stopping the trickster from gaining a prolonged foothold in the squad.

In his past few seasons, under Sir Alex Ferguson, the wide man seemed to slip down the pecking order at Old Trafford, the likes of Danny Welbeck, Wayne Rooney, Ashley Young and even Shinji Kawaga preferred on the left wing instead.

However, it seems David Moyes might have renewed faith in the 26-year-old whom he would appear to have a lot of faith in.

Faith enough, at least, to offer Nani a new deal with the Red Devils, which would presumably see the player come back into the fold when healthy once more.

Nani’s contract was set to expire next summer, meaning the club would have been likely to cash in now rather than lose the player on a free next term.

In his six Premier League seasons, the winger has shown massive potential at times, amassing no less than 19 assists in the 2010-11 campaign, followed by a tally of 12 in 2011-12.

However, as aforementioned, it’s prolonging that kind of proficiency that has always been a stumbling block for the flashy forward.

If anything, one might have backed a manager as prestigious as Ferguson to be able to squeeze the most out of his player, but that task now lies with Moyes, a challenge he would seem up for.

At Goodison Park, the Scotsman certainly did do well in getting the most out of his players at times, turning a fairly average squad into one capable of European football at times. But doing the same with the standard on show at Manchester United will be a different story altogether.

As long as injury isn’t an issue, 26-year-old Nani may yet reproduce some of his best form on the Red Devils' wing, but the best option would have been in reinvestment after acquiring a fee for the player.

Parts of United’s squad have begun to stagnate in the past year or so, with the wings being one of them, and a more experienced acquisition than Wilfried Zaha may be a better answer to the question of “What to do with Nani?”