Manchester United recently confirmed the departures of Christian Eriksen, Jonny Evans and Victor Lindelof at the expiry of their contracts this month.
The club also revealed that they were discussing a new deal with goalkeeper Tom Heaton beyond June 30, and The Sun claim that a breakthrough has been found.
The 39-year-old has ‘verbally agreed’ to put pen-to-paper on a one-year playing contract, and an announcement is expected to follow in the coming days.
Heaton, who rejoined the club on a free transfer in 2021, is set to link up with the United squad for pre-season training in July, ahead of the friendly against Leeds United in Stockholm.
United make sensible decision to keep Heaton
The Red Devils presently have Andre Onana as the undisputed starter in goal for the league games.
Altay Bayindir has provided the backup, and he has featured mainly in the Cup competitions. Just like Onana, he has been prone to making occasional errors.
The club have no plans to offload either at the current point in time, but the situation could change later this summer. It is more likely that Bayindir could depart amid his limited minutes.
Torino’s Vanja Milinkovic-Savic and Royal Antwerp’s Senne Lammens have been identified as possible additions to the squad ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.
However, neither may come on the cheap after stand-out seasons. In case Bayindir were to push for an exit, Heaton could be promoted as the deputy goalkeeper.
The 39-year-old has not played in the Premier League for the Red Devils but has good experience in the top flight, with 116 appearances for Burnley and Aston Villa.
He could emerge as an emergency backup if United were to lose Bayindir and fail to land a successor.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com