Why extending Fosu-Mensah’s contract would be a safe bet for Man United
According to The Sun, Manchester United are set to trigger Timothy Fosu-Mensah’s one-year contract extension in the coming weeks.
The Dutch full-back has just a few months left on his deal, with the current contract set to expire next summer.
Fosu-Mensah has not featured in a single match this season, as he nurses his way back from a cruciate knee injury sustained during his loan spell at Fulham last season.
United are eager to keep the young defender for at least another 12 months, instead of retaining his services for the long term, as claimed by The Sun.
The club are also open to loan offers from other clubs, provided he is assured of adequate game time (h/t The Sun).
Meanwhile, Fosu-Mensah wants a raise in his £20,000-a-week wages, as reported by The Sun.
However, the Red Devils’ decision to extend the Dutchman’s contract comes in the wake of a rather frustrating period for the club.
As many as 8 players in the United squad are currently injured and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is left with very few options to choose from.
On top of that, United are currently in a difficult spot, having been pushed to 9th in the table after a string of inconsistent displays this season.
Among the 8 players ruled out, 5 of them are defenders and Ole needs to take extra caution, as any more injuries could affect the team drastically.
Barring the young Timothy, the Norwegian has two right-backs at his disposal – Englishman Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Portuguese Diogo Dalot.
Wan-Bissaka has become Ole’s preferred choice at right-back and the 22-year-old is third on the list of players with most tackles this season, behind Leicester City’s Wilfred Ndidi (61) and Ricardo Pereira (58), with 55 to his name so far.
Meanwhile, Dalot has already missed half the season like Fosu-Mensah, and is yet to recover from a groin injury.
The 20-year-old former Porto full-back has made just one Premier League appearance this season.
All said and done, the decision to extend Fosu-Mensah’s deal is a safe bet, considering the number of injury concerns persisting within the squad.
In the Dutchman, United have an experienced campaigner, who has played 21 matches for them.
His presence would also provide a healthy competition to Wan-Bissaka and Dalot.
Formerly from Ajax, the Dutch defender joined the United academy in 2014 but has struggled to cement a spot for himself.
Nevertheless, he has served two loan spells during his time at Old Trafford – one at Crystal Palace and the other at Fulham.
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Verdict
With most of the defenders currently sidelined due to injuries, United’s decision to trigger an extension for Fosu-Mensah seems to be a safe one.
Moreover, the Dutchman could be a back-up for first-choice full-back Wan-Bissaka, thus providing the United boss with more options at the back.