Bundesliga star quizzed on potential United switch responds that the club are in his heart

Manchester United oversaw Matej Kovar’s exit last summer to Bayer Leverkusen, with the goalkeeper now closing in on a potential Bundesliga title.

In truth, Kovar’s departure was the most suitable move for all parties. He was still waiting to make the leap to the first-team after five years at United and had already completed three separate loan spells at Swindon Town, Burton Albion and Sparta Prague, the latter of which saw him win the Czech First League with the club.

The Red Devils earned £7.7 million from his transfer, which is a respectable fee given that he hadn’t made any senior appearances and was, therefore, still classed as an under-21s player. 

Kovar, 23, has featured only once in the league this campaign but has accumulated a combined 10 appearances in the Europa League and DFB Pokal. It’s unlikely that he’d have progressed any further at Old Trafford this term due to Erik ten Hag’s unwavering faith in.1 Andre Onana; second-choice Altay Bayindir was made to wait four months for his debut and has yet to feature between the sticks since then. 

Kovar pleased to finally gain senior experience

Quizzed on a potential return to Manchester, Czech international Kovar divulged his love for his former club while affirming that his future lies elsewhere. 

“No, I have not [considered it]. It is important for me to start playing regularly and establish a position in Leverkusen. Then, we will see what happens in the future,” he began, as cited by Sport.

“Of course, they’re [United] still [in] my heart. I spent many years at the club. I’ll take a look when I get a chance. United are going through a difficult season. The results are like a merry-go-round. But it’s a big and great club, I hope it gets back to the top. We all agreed that going to Leverkusen made sense.

“It was a shift for me. And if someone had told me before the season that I would play around 15 games for Leverkusen, one of the best teams in Europe, I would have taken all ten. I believe that I made the right move and that it will be confirmed in the future.”