Christian Eriksen has insisted that Manchester United did not tell him that he was free to leave over the summer despite the speculation surrounding his future.

The Denmark international was strongly linked with a departure during the recent transfer market, having found it difficult to secure regular starts during the 2023-24 campaign.

Real Betis allegedly made an attempt to sign Eriksen on loan in the final stages of the window, but Man United rejected the offer from the La Liga outfit.

The 32-year-old was an unused substitute for his team's first two Premier League matches of the season, but he featured off the bench against Liverpool before starting against Southampton last weekend.

Eriksen was then handed a spot in the XI for the EFL Cup clash with Barnsley on Tuesday evening, and he produced one of his best performances since arriving at the club in the summer of 2022, scoring twice and registering one assist in his side's 7-0 win.

Eriksen has one year left on Man United contract

The midfielder has insisted that he was not told to leave the Red Devils over the summer, and he has not ruled out staying with the club beyond the end of the current campaign.

"I feel very good being at United. If they told me to leave I would leave but I didn't hear that," Eriksen told reporters when asked about the transfer speculation over the summer.

"I'm also a guy who likes being in a place where my family is settled and at the same time being in a place where I can benefit and play, that's always going to be my aim.

"It's difficult to ask the manager in the off-season how many minutes I'm going to get in a season. If he starts promising minutes to players we're going to have a long season. There was no speaking in that sense, just head down, work hard and focus on each game.

"There's one year left so my focus is going to be on this year, going full out and see what happens afterwards."

Will Eriksen start against Crystal Palace?

Man United head coach Erik ten Hag now has a big decision to make when it comes to Eriksen's spot for Saturday's Premier League clash against Crystal Palace.

Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes are certain to return to the XI for the league affair, while Manuel Ugarte has made a strong case to start after his performance against Barnsley.

Ugarte debuted for the Red Devils off the bench against Southampton last weekend, before making his first start for the club against Barnsley, playing 62 minutes of the League Cup contest.

Ten Hag will seemingly choose between Ugarte and Eriksen against Palace, while Casemiro and Toby Collyer are also options for Man United in that area of the field.

Eriksen arrived at Old Trafford off the back of an impressive spell at Brentford, and he has represented the Red Devils on 75 occasions, scoring five goals and registering 14 assists in the process.