Erik ten Hag would reportedly prefer for Manchester United to delay contract discussions with a number of his first-team squad.

The Dutchman has endured a mixed start to life at Old Trafford, overseeing four wins and three defeats in seven Premier League fixtures.

Their latest setback came on Sunday afternoon as they succumbed to a 6-3 defeat at the hands of neighbours Manchester City, with two of their consolation goals coming during the closing stages at the Etihad Stadium.

With mixed fortunes also being endured in the Europa League, the jury remains out on Ten Hag, and it appears that is how he also views his United squad.

According to The Telegraph, the former Ajax boss does not want to be left lumbered with players who he does not regard as a part of his long-term plans.

That has allegedly resulted in Ten Hag requesting that no new contracts are signed before the World Cup, which takes place at the end of 2022.

Ten Hag is said to want to use that time to determine who deserves to remain in the senior group past the 2022-23 campaign.

A source is quoted by the outlet as saying: "He's still in that phase of 'Let's see how people are, let's see what they are up to.

"How they adjust, how they handle pressure, how they handle not being picked, how they deal with different challenges. He's still understanding them and over the next month or so he'll start getting clarity in his head."

As it stands, as many as six players in his current squad have contracts which are due to expire at the end of the season.

David de Gea, Diogo Dalot, Luke Shaw, Fred, Marcus Rashford and Cristiano Ronaldo can all theoretically depart Old Trafford next summer at this stage, although the Red Devils possess the option to extend the majority of their deals by a further 12 months.

In most cases, that is likely to occur in an effort to protect their valuations, but it has been widely claimed that Ronaldo may depart the Theatre of Dreams in one of the next two transfer windows.

The report adds that Tom Heaton and Phil Jones, the third-choice goalkeeper and fringe centre-back, will also come under the same consideration.

However, it is reportedly already accepted that Axel Tuanzebe will be allowed to leave United for a cut-price fee in January or on a free transfer later in the year. body check tags ::