Man Utd fail to secure buyback clause for star who’s departing tonight, as Romano reveals exit value

Manchester United have allowed Sevilla to have an option to buy Hannibal Mejbri after his loan spell, but if it is activated, there will be no buyback clause in the Premier League side’s favour, Fabrizio Romano has revealed.

Hannibal has played 10 times in the first part of the season for Man Utd after returning from a loan spell with Birmingham City last term. He is about to undertake another change of scenery, though, with Sevilla.

The reigning Europa League champions have already agreed to take Mateo Mejia from Man Utd and have been working on taking Mejbri too.

There have been some major developments to the story on Sunday, with Romano reporting that an agreement has been struck between the two clubs for the Tunisia international.

Mejbri will be moving to Sevilla on loan with an option to buy, which is set at €20m (over £17m).

However, Romano has clarified that Man Utd will not have any clause giving them the right to buy Hannibal back if he does become a permanent Sevilla player.

There was previously a belief that Man Utd would secure a buyback clause for Mejbri, thus not losing entire control of his future, but that has not turned out to be the case.

As such, when Mejbri departs, it could be for good – unless he ultimately fails to convince Sevilla to buy him, in which case he would return to Man Utd ahead of the final year of his contract.

Romano has confirmed that the 20-year-old will be travelling to Spain tonight (Sunday) in anticipation of undergoing his medical with Sevilla next week.

The side he is joining are entrenched in a relegation battle this season, currently just sitting one point above the drop zone after winning only one of their last 14 La Liga matches.

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Therefore, they will be hoping their January recruitment can help steer them away from danger, which immediately imposes a sense of responsibility onto players like Mejbri.

Born in France, Mejbri is about to get the opportunity to play in Spain for the first time in his career.

Having declined a place in Tunisia’s squad for the Africa Cup of Nations in order to focus on finalising his next step at club level, Mejbri is eligible to get going with Sevilla straight away, as soon as the formal processes of his move there are completed.

Might Man Utd regret missing out on buyback clause?

Hannibal Mejbri of Manchester United

When Romano posted his ‘here we go’ tweet to confirm the Mejbri move is going ahead, even then he hinted that he ‘expected’ a buyback clause to be added as the ‘final detail’.

Less than an hour later, when he posted more information on X, Romano clarified there would be no buyback clause.

Given Mejbri’s age, there is plenty of time ahead for him to become a reliable player at a decent level.

Man Utd spotted his potential at an early age, signing him for their academy from Monaco when he was just 16.

Therefore, if Mejbri goes on to make it and it is not with them, there would surely be a hint of regret.

On the flipside, €20m is a significant fee for a player who has made just nine Premier League appearances in his career so far.

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