Sports
Mehdi Benatia Reveals Reason Behind Man Utd Snub
Moroccan international defender Mehdi Benatia has revealed the reason behind his decision to snub Premier League giants Manchester United during the just concluded winter transfer window.
The former AS Roma and Bayern Munich centre back talked about the botched transfer to Manchester United in his recent interview as monitored by Metro.
According to the player, he wanted his kids to grow up in an Islamic atmosphere.
The 31-year-old was reacting to criticisms from the Moroccan Sports circle.
Mehdi Benatia was heavily criticized for his decision to leave Italian Serie A champions Juventus to join Al Duhail of Qatar.
The player also added that he could have gone to clubs in Saudi Arabia or in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) but he chose to join Qatari club Al Duhail.
Mehdi Benatia sealed his transfer to Al Duhail from Italian giants Juventus last month after both clubs agreed a £7m (€8m) deal for his transfer.
He has been given the number 28 Jersey at Qatari club Al Duhail upon his transfer from Juventus during the January transfer window.
Reports in Italy had claimed that Manchester United made an offer worth £4m (€4.5m) in weekly wages in their quest to sign him but the player opted for a transfer to the Middle East.
