Manchester United centre-back Victor Lindelof is reportedly in line for a new contract with the Red Devils.
The Sweden international was only a bit-part player for Erik ten Hag in the first half of the campaign, as Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane formed an effective pairing at the back.
However, Lindelof was offered a route back into the first team following Varane and Martinez's serious injuries, and he has put in a string of strong showings in the heart of the backline.
Lindelof played the full 90 minutes in each of the Red Devils' last nine Premier League matches in the 2022-23 season, keeping four clean sheets as Ten Hag's side sealed a return to the Champions League with a third-placed finish.
The 28-year-old was also named in the first XI for Man United's FA Cup semi-final and final encounters with Brighton & Hove Albion and Manchester City respectively, completing 83 minutes of the latter, despite being hit by a projectile thrown from the crowd after Bruno Fernandes's equaliser.
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Lindelof's contract at Old Trafford is due to expire in 2024, and while the Red Devils can trigger a 12-month extension, his lack of minutes in the first half of the season has led to the expectation that he will be moved on.
However, The Sun reports that Ten Hag wants to keep the former Benfica defender on the books at Old Trafford, having been impressed with his contributions in the business end of the season.
The Red Devils are not believed to be planning talks over a new deal, though, and are instead only planning to activate his extension option to keep him at the club until 2025.
Lindelof admitted in March that he would have to consider his Man United future this summer due to his playing situation, having started just five of the Red Devils' first 29 matches of the Premier League season.
The Scandinavian was a regular in the Europa League with six starts, although five of those came in the group stage, and he was also an unused substitute in the EFL Cup final against Newcastle United.
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Since joining Man United in a €35m (£30.2m) deal from Benfica in 2017, Lindelof has represented the Red Devils on 231 occasions, scoring three goals and setting up six more.
The 2022-23 EFL Cup was Lindelof's first piece of silverware at Old Trafford, where a number of other centre-backs could also be on the way out ahead of the 2023-24 season.
Harry Maguire - who was below Lindelof in the pecking order - could either leave on loan or permanently, and there have been suggestions that he could be offered to Chelsea as part of a deal for Mason Mount.
Phil Jones is also confirmed to be leaving when his deal runs out this summer, and Axel Tuanzebe is expected to join him after failing to break into the Red Devils' first team on a regular basis.
Napoli's Kim Min-jae and Ajax's Jurrien Timber are both believed to be defensive targets for Man United, and the latter was at Wembley to watch Ten Hag's side lose 2-1 to Man City in Saturday's FA Cup final.
Ben Knapton
