Exclusive: Transfer expert reveals why Man United star turned down move to Premier League rivals

Manchester United youngster Hannibal Mejbri chose Sevilla over Everton in this January’s transfer window due to the La Liga club’s strong and long-standing interest in him, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his latest column in the Daily Briefing, Romano explained the latest on the situation surrounding Mejbri, who has just agreed to leave Man Utd on loan to Sevilla until the end of the season.

There is also a clause that gives Sevilla the option to make Hannibal’s move permanent, but if this were to happen, the Red Devils would not have a buy-back clause option for the Tunisia international.

This perhaps seems a bit risky from United, as Mejbri has long looked like a hugely promising young talent, but of course it is still not yet clear if Sevilla will actually decide to trigger the option to sign the 20-year-old permanently at the end of his loan anyway.

Everton also showed an interest in the young midfielder, but Romano explained: “As I previously mentioned, Everton were also keen on the player and tried to hijack the deal but I’m told Sevilla already wanted him in August, so this insistence made the difference as they really wanted Hannibal strongly.”

Romano also said he felt this looked like a good move for the player, saying: “I think this looks like a very good loan for Hannibal at this stage of his career. Sevilla will give him some space, it’s an important club in difficult situation so some pressure can also help him to grow.”