Manchester United have invoked options to extend the contracts of Juan Mata, Ander Herrera, Ashley Young and Daley Blind until the end of next season.
The quartet would have become free agents this summer but United have moved to secure the players’ immediate futures and bolster their transfer values by triggering clauses that extend their deals by a further 12 months to June 2019.
United had already triggered the 12-month option in Luke Shaw’s contract before then with England left-back also contracted until at the end of next season. The players are understood to have received letters confirming the extensions.
The longer-term futures of Mata, Blind, Young and Shaw are less clear but by invoking the clauses in the players’ deals United have avoided any immediate complications and given manager Jose Mourinho time to decide what he wants to do with the players.