Sneijder wage demands end hopes of Old Trafford move

 

Ian Herbert
Friday 12 August 2011 10:00 BST
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Wesley Sneijder's wages seem to matter more to him than ambition
Wesley Sneijder's wages seem to matter more to him than ambition

Manchester United do not expect Wesley Sneijder to sign for the club ahead of the new Premier League campaign. There has been no movement on the prospective purchase of the 27-year-old for months and, with only 19 days remaining until the transfer window closes, the Premier League champions consider the prospect of a move for him to be closed.

Though the club do not publicly discuss their transfer business, they are willing to let it be known that chief executive David Gill's position on the issue – disclosed most recently on pre-season tour of the United States – has not changed. United's stance on the non-existence of a deal is an emphatic one.

A highly placed source at a Premier League club – not Manchester United – has told i that Sneijder is desperate to leave Internazionale because of his belief that there is no prospect of substantial success there and his conviction that the club has not developed its squad since winning the Champions League in 2010.

But wages seem to matter more to the player than footballing ambition: his basic weekly wage demands of at least £200,000 have been off the scale, for both United and Manchester City.

Sneijder will have to jettison his financial ambition if there is to be any hope of a deal being salvaged. The conviction at United that he will not do so is absolute.

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