Adnan Januzaj is back with Manchester United after his loan
deal with Borussia Dortmund was cancelled.
United sent the Belgium forward on a season-long loan to the
German club in August in order for him to gain more experience, but he has
started just three matches - all in the Europa League - and his only playing
time in the Bundesliga came off the substitutes' bench.
There was no release clause inserted into Januzaj's loan
contract when it was signed, but the clubs have agreed that it is in their
best interests to terminate the deal.
The relevant paperwork was exchanged on Thursday and the
loan agreement was annulled.
A United statement read: "Borussia Dortmund has agreed
to cancel the loan agreement for Adnan Januzaj. Adnan will rejoin the
first-team squad immediately.
"He has returned to Manchester in order to clarify the
details."
Januzaj, whose last appearance was in Dortmund's 1-0
Europa League defeat to PAOK Salonika on December 10, is understood
to have stayed in Manchester over the Christmas period and was in the Old
Trafford directors' box for the game against Chelsea on December 28.
United have until 5pm on Friday to register him for
Saturday's FA Cup third-round tie against Sheffield United, although boss
Louis van Gaal may decide to ease him back into the first-team set-up
after a couple of games for the U21 side.
United will not be able to loan the 20-year-old out
again as he has already played for the Red Devils this year - he featured four
times in August before joining Dortmund - and FIFA rules state players are not
allowed to play for more than two clubs per season.
Van Gaal had warned Januzaj last year he was taking a risk
by joining Dortmund,rather than a lower-profile club where he would have been
guaranteed to play more.
"In a club like Borussia Dortmund, all the players
there are also of a certain level and I said in advance, 'That's a big
risk for you because you have to compete with other players of a higher
level' and that is not so easy," the United manager said in November.
Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc admitted Januzaj's
loan spell had been largely disappointing.
"It was a wish of Adnan to go back. The loan wasn't a
good deal for both sides all in all," he told Kicker.
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