By Dave Marshall
Manchester United are close to extending the contracts of a number of players on our payroll in a bid to avoid losing them on a free transfer when their contracts expire at the end of this season. All four players have contracts that end in June 2018, but the club want to invoke a 12 month extension clause in their contract that will ensure that even if they have to leave, the club will have the higher bargaining power.
The quintet of Marouane Fellaini, Juan Mata, Daley Blind, Ander Herrera and Ashley Young are expected to put pen to paper in the coming months despite speculation about their futures at Old Trafford.
Ashley Young, the winger cum left back has become the first choice left back at the club given the inconsistencies of the likes of Daley Blind, Matteo Darmian and Luke Shaw.
Young turns 33 next summer and has impressed this term sufficiently to warrant a new deal. The case of Belgian, Marouane Fellaini is more interesting as the player is a personal favourite of José Mourinho. The likes of Besiktas and Galatasaray were heavily linked to the 29 year old this summer, but José rebuffed all attempts to sign the curly haired midfielder.
Spanish duo, Ander Herrera and Juan Mata are wanted by Spain giants, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid respectively. The pair who impressed last season have struggled to replicate that form this term leading to speculation that this season might be their last at the club. Herrera, who won the Club’s Player of the Year award last season has found opportunities hard to come by this campaign as he is now fourth choice central midfielder behind Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Fellaini.
Mata is wanted by former club, Real Madrid who have seen the player as a valuable addition to the first team at the Santiago Bernabeu and are willing to bring him back to the club.
United don’t want to risk losing the players for meagre amounts so invoking the 12 month extension options in their contract means that even it we want to sell, they will command higher prices which will lead to quality replacement arriving at the club to push us to further glory.
United are placed second on the league table behind Manchester City and we face Newcastle next after the international break.
