Manchester United full-back Diogo Dalot has enjoyed a good start to life under Erik ten Hag.
The 23-year-old has managed to establish himself as the first choice right-back at Old Trafford and is now part of a steady back four which includes Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia. It is no surprise therefore that Dalot is hopeful of extending his stay in Manchester.
MEN Sport understands that despite interest from clubs such as Barcelona and Juventus, the Portuguese defender wishes to commit to United. At present, his contract is set to expire at the end of the campaign, however United do have an option to extend the deal by a further year should they wish to.
ALSO READ: Exclusive - Dalot hopeful of new United contract
Before his brilliant start to the 2022/23 campaign, Dalot had already put forward his claim for why he deserved a new contract at United. Speaking to MUTV back in March, the defender explained how his game has improved.
"I always try to step up a little bit each game, but I'd like to say in general I've been playing good, in my opinion," Dalot claimed. "I'm growing in every aspect of my game and I'm trying to get that consistency that will give me more time on the pitch.
"Obviously getting more minutes from this club, that's what I wanted since I came here. I want to combine that with good results in the team and help the team get a result as well."
During the 2020/21 campaign, Dalot spent time in Italy with Milan having struggled for minutes at Old Trafford. The Portuguese full-back added that this experience also aided his development.
He said: "It was very good for me to see another perspective: not just the one I had in Portugal or here, but another country's perspective. It brought me a lot of stuff that I'm now using and hopefully I can combine everything and be a better – not just player, but a man as well.
"It's always a new perspective, a new challenge as well, new opportunity. That's the point of a loan, because you're not getting the game time you want here.
"You want to have that and show that you can have a good run of games and perform at a high level and that’s what I showed last season when I was in Italy. Obviously with the help of the club, with the help of the players I had there, it was fantastic.
"I felt I got the job done and then I came back here and felt more confident, more prepared as well, because I had the high-quality games on my legs, on my mind. Obviously I was ready to start the season and so I'm here now."
For the time being at least, Dalot will be hoping to continue impressing Ten Hag on the pitch with United traveling to City in the Manchester derby on Sunday. Victory for United would move them to within two points of their arch rivals with a game in hand over them.
READ NEXT:
