Manchester United: Ander Herrera wants long spell at Old Trafford before 'dream' Zaragoza return

Manchester United star Ander Herrera wants to take the most out of his experience at Old Trafford during a long-term spell before making a "dream" return to his childhood side, Real Zaragoza.

The 25-year-old midfielder was born in Bilbao but developed his talent in the Zaragoza academy – where his father worked as technical secretary – before making his debut in the La Romareda first team in the 2008-09 season, helping them secure the promotion to the top flight even though he was still a teenager.

Herrera enjoyed two productive campaigns at Zaragoza but was sold to Athletic Bilbao in the summer of 2011 for around €8.5m (£6.1m, $9.7m) to help the club's financial struggles.

The Spaniard continued his meteoric development with the Basque side before United manager Louis van Gaal agreed to meet his €36m release clause to make him his first addition of the summer in 2014.

And even though he had a slow start in the Premier League, Herrera became a crucial member of the team during the second part of the campaign, receiving the club's player of the month award in February and April, while scoring eight goals.

The midfielder says he is focused on United for the long term but admits that in the future, he would love to return to Zaragoza, with the Spaniards on the verge of securing promotion to La Liga's first division after years of crisis both economically and on the pitch.

Asked during an interview with local television station Aragon TV whether he would like to return to his childhood side in the future, he said: "That's my dream.

"That is my intention. They're now putting the bases to build a Real Zaragoza [like] the one we used to know."

"Now I'm enjoying a lot at Manchester United. Being in one of the four or five biggest clubs in the world is something you have to take advantage of. I will try to make the most of it and to [do] the maximum possible [in my] time here. But I'm still young, I am 25 years old and of course in my head is the idea of going back to Zaragoza."

Meanwhile, the Spaniard has claimed that after a transitional campaign at Old Trafford, he hopes his side will fight for all the silverware on offer next term.

He said: "United have to fight for every title and this last season we have not done it. The target was to return to Europe because we came from a season in which we had not qualified for the Champions League. A new manager and many new players arrived to the team and it was a transition year but next year we have to fight for everything."