Luke Shaw is reportedly set to receive a 12-month extension on his contract with Jose Mourinho keen on retaining the left-back beyond this summer.
According to a report by The Sun, Manchester United are set to offer Luke Shaw a 12-month extension on his current contract. It is understood that they are doing so in order to protect the investment they made when they purchased him from Southampton in 2014.
The 22-year-old currently has ten months remaining on his £130,000-a-week contract. The extension is likely to boost the youngster’s confidence and possibly propel him towards making a comeback this season. Shaw is yet to feature so far this term, after damaging his ankle ligament.
Although the Englishman has been quite impressive in his two starts for the Under-23s, he will have to stage a strong fight to convince Mourinho to let him play first-team football again.
Luke Shaw moved to Old Trafford for an initial fee of £27 million, which saw him become the then most expensive teenager in the world of football. A lot was riding on his shoulders as he was expected to serve as a replacement for the club’s long-serving left-back Patrice Evra.
The English defender started off on a strong note, building up a modest debut campaign with a solid start to the 2015-16 season. But he suffered a horrific injury in September 2015, against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League.
Since then, Shaw has hardly managed to find his feet again. United have been linked to Kieran Tierney from Celtic, which is likely to make things tougher for Shaw in terms of competition.
So far, the Red Devils have had to make do with the likes of Marcos Rojo, Daley Blind, Matteo Darmian and Ashley Young as makeshift options, but have still not signed an out-and-out natural player in that position. The new contract extension could mean that Mourinho is providing the youngster with one more opportunity to fight for his spot.
Shaw should be hoping that he gets the opportunity to show his manager what he can do over the course of this season. It is quite clear that the left-back has no shortage of talent. Working on his fitness and maintaining his focus should be of utmost priority for Shaw as he gets set to launch a strong comeback to the squad.
