Ander Herrera Tells Manchester United He Wants to Stay at Athletic Bilbao

Athletic Bilbao midfielder Ander Herrera has put an end to speculation suggesting he could join Manchester United in the January transfer window, confirming he wishes to stay at the San Mames Stadium.

The 24-year-old midfielder appears to have grown frustrated of a story that has developed since David Moyes failed to land his signature during the summer transfer window, as reported by Nick Lustig of the Daily Star:

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I am tired about this issue. People are going to think that I want an exit but it is not true. I have said already that I am happy in Athletic Bilbao and I am going to stay here.

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Herrera's comments will force Moyes to look elsewhere, despite his continued interest in the versatile Spaniard.

United's new boss failed to sign the player during a disappointing summer transfer window for the Red Devils.

While the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Sami Khedira and Wesley Sneijder were linked to the club, as reported by Ben Jefferson of the Express, it was the deadline-day failure to land Herrera which highlighted a summer of mishaps for the Scottish boss.

Herrera is understood to have a buyout clause of £36 million, per Lustig's report. Moyes appeared mightily close to triggering a transfer at the beginning of September, before a trio of "imposters" supposedly scuppered the deal, as reported by David McDonnell of the Mirror:

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The trio are said to have been involved in football deals before - they helped broker Javi Martinez's move from Bilbao to Bayern Munich last year - and were thought to be acting as intermediaries in the potential deal taking Herrera to United.

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Sid Lowe of The Guardian claimed such an event took place due to United's "failure to understand the complexities of Spanish buy-out clauses"—analysis that is sure to have left many United fans frustrated in the immediate aftermath.

Moyes instead opted to pay £27.5 million for Marouane Fellaini, a move that is yet to work out positively for the Premier League titleholders.

The Belgian continues to play sloppy football—underlined by his red card in the Champions League tie away at Real Sociedad—and is yet to make a significant impact in his Old Trafford surroundings.

Herrera has made nine starts and one substitute appearance this season, helping Bilbao to fifth in La Liga.

Coach Ernesto Valverde continues to rotate the player, who has failed to score or lay on an assist this campaign, per WhoScored.com, often favouring to begin matches with namesake Ander Iturraspe and summer signing Benat in midfield.

Herrera has only completed 90 minutes on two occasions this season—during the recent win over Malaga and Bilbao's loss to Granada at the end of September.

Such a disjointed run of games makes the player's comments rather surprising.

Moyes could potentially offer Herrera regular football at United—especially if the likes of Fellaini, Tom Cleverley and Anderson fail to form an effective partnership with Michael Carrick—as the newly installed boss searches for creativity, tackling prowess and physical presence in the centre.

As noted in Lustig's report, Moyes is now expected to turn his attention toward Atletico Madrid's Koke and Real Madrid's Angel Di Maria.

Both represent excellent signings for the Premier League club, but as ever, United supporters shouldn't get their hopes up until either talent is seen holding the red shirt alongside their new manager.

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