Man Utd star set for crunch talks after Wayne Rooney questioned his place in squad

Manchester United defender Jonny Evans claims he is yet to sit down with club chiefs to discuss the possibility of a contract renewal. Talks are due ‘in the next couple of weeks’ as the defender waits patiently to discover whether he has a future at Old Trafford.

The 36-year-old came off the bench during United’s fairytale FA Cup final win over Manchester City on Saturday. It remains to be seen whether that was his farewell appearance, with his contract expiring in just over a month’s time.

Evans has made 30 appearances in all competitions this campaign – many more than most expected when he was offered a short-term contract last summer – and although Wayne Rooney once shared a dressing room with the Northern Irishman, the United legend has questioned whether the club should be relying on a centre-back deep into the twilight of his career.

“Jonny Evans has come back in,” Rooney told the BBC while working as a pundit at Wembley. “Jonny’s a leader, but realistically, Jonny shouldn’t be playing for Manchester United now, at this stage of his career.”

United benefitted from the recent returns of centre-backs Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez in the win over City. Varane is set to leave Old Trafford this summer, but Erik ten Hag has already made it known that he hopes to sign a replacement.

With Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and academy prospect Willy Kambwala also in the equation, Evans risks being frozen out. Speaking to the Manchester Evening News about his contract situation after the final, the veteran said: “I’m pretty relaxed about it.

“I’ll see what the club say over the next couple of weeks but nothing at the moment in terms of discussions over a new contract, so we’ll see how it goes.”

Ten Hag was evidently impressed with what he saw in Evans when he allowed him to train with United last summer. But the defender’s future may not be decided by the Dutchman if Sir Jim Ratcliffe opts to appoint a new manager.

United have kept their cards close to their chest regarding Ten Hag’s future, amid reports that he would be sacked regardless of the result on Saturday. Evans feels that the former Ajax boss deserves credit for his performance in the dugout this season.

“Every time there’s been a setback – and there seem to have been so many setbacks – each training session, each match, we’ve had changes to the squad, sometimes the day before the game. And he’s just taken it on the chin and got on with it,” he said. “I think you’ve seen [against City] he was probably able to get his starting team, or close to it, on the pitch and they produced.”