Victor Lindelof will be doing everything in his power to underline his worth to Erik ten Hag in Spain.
That's the message from ex- Manchester United goalkeeper, Paul Woolston, who trained alongside Lindelof and his competitors for a starting spot - including Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane - before he was forced to hang up his gloves prematurely, aged 23, due to a long-standing injury problem in March.
Despite sitting behind those two and summer signing Lisandro Martinez in the centre-back pecking order, Lindelof has still managed to make 11 appearances this season. With those three still on World Cup duty, the Sweden captain has, also, been able to work closely with Ten Hag on the training ground before Premier League resumption.
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With a pause in the domestic schedule, United have jetted out to Spain for mid-season friendlies against Cadiz and Real Betis as players are also put through their paces on the training ground. A youthful group has headed over with England forward Jadon Sancho travelling to the Netherlands to focus on an individual programme before linking back up with his teammates at Carrington next week.
However, several first-team members have made the trip - including Lindelof who was named in the starting XI vs Cadiz - and these two matches give him the perfect opportunity to nudge Ten Hag before the Carabao Cup return against Burnley on Wednesday, December 21. That comes just three days after the World Cup ends.
Sitting on the MUTV panel, Woolston said: "He hasn't put a foot wrong when he's played. He has been solid and it looks like he has played every game [when he does play]. That's down to his personality and the type of person he is, so he will be looking at this as another opportunity to show he deserves to play.
"With that Burnley game coming up so quick, if they [Varane, Maguire and Martinez] get all the way through to the final, there's a spot there. If he does what we know he can do, then it can ask questions for the manager."
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