In the latest move, Manchester United is surprised the grave with the plan to extend the 12 -month contract for veteran goalkeeper Tom Heaton. However, the decision seems to be this formal only contains the careful attempts of the team leadership, especially in the context of the Reds can win the right to return to the Champions League if the Europa League championship this season.
At the age of 38, Tom Heaton is no longer a choice to consider in the wooden frame. However, his value far exceeded the minutes of competition on the field. With more than 20 years of working with Man United, Heaton is not only an experienced temple guard but also a silent leader in the Carrington dressing room. In particular, he meets the criteria “trained at the club” – an important factor in the Regulation on UEFA and Premier League registration.
According to current regulations, clubs participating in the Champions League must have at least 8 players “trained in the UK”, of which 4 people have to be “training at the club” – meaning that at least 3 years for the club in the age of 15 to 21. Currently, besides Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho – those who are on the list B, Man United have only 4 names that meet this condition: Heaton, Dermot Mee, Jonny Evans and Marcus Rashford. However, they are all facing Big Questionions about the future.
Evans is about to run out of contracts, Rashford can leave after the loan time at Aston Villa, while Mee has never been given the chance of kicking. Even the future of Mainoo or Garnacho has nothing to guarantee. Man United once considered selling both in the January transfer period to improve the budget, because they are all products from the Academy, which means bringing net profits in financial statements.
Mainoo has not reached an extension agreement, and Garnacho is in the sights of many big clubs. If the prospect of Evans, Rashford and one of the two young talents mentioned above Old Trafford becomes true, Man United will face the risk of serious shortage players who are “trained at the club” for the European arena. That is the reason why the decision to keep Heaton becomes essential.
He is not only an experienced player, can stabilize the dressing room, but also contribute to ensuring the structure of the team registration correctly. In the modern football world, where the personnel strategy needs to go hand in hand with the financial element and the rules of competition, the retention of a goalkeeper rarely plays like Heaton turned out to be a computational and pragmatic flag of Man United.
