Erik ten Hag is expecting "massive contributions" from the four players who recently saw their Manchester United contracts extended for another year.
Marcus Rashford, Luke Shaw, Diogo Dalot and Fred were due to become free agents next summer before the Red Devils activated clauses in their deals to keep them with the club until June 2024. Club chiefs took action in December to prevent the quartet from being free to speak to clubs outside England from the January transfer window onwards.
The decision was about more than transfer strategy, however, as Ten Hag insists the four players in question "have to be part of" his long-term vision for the club. The Dutchman is still moulding the squad he inherited when arriving from Ajax this summer to his requirements but clearly views Rashford, Shaw, Dalot and Fred as central to his plans.
"Yes, I can confirm it," he told MUTV of the four contract extensions. "We are happy because the squad is going in the right direction and those players [have] a massive contribution in that direction."
Ten Hag added: "We want to develop, we want to support those players and we want them to keep in our process. So, that's why we came to those decisions, I'm sure they are the right decisions. We want to construct a team for the future, so for longer years, and those players have to be part of it."
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It was no surprise to see Rashford's contract with his boyhood club extended for another season. The England forward, 25, is United's top scorer this season with nine goals in all competitions and is poised to lead the line after Cristiano Ronaldo's contract was terminated in November.
Dalot, 23, has been similarly important for Ten Hag; no Red Devils player can better the Portugal right-back's tally of 20 starts in all competitions this season. Shaw, 27, has not played such a prominent role on the other side of the back four, where he shares minutes with summer-signing Tyrell Malacia, but underlined his quality with his performances for the Three Lions at the World Cup.
Fred's situation is the most interesting of the Old Trafford quartet. Paris Saint-Germain are weighing up a bid for the 29-year-old, who has lost his regular starting spot under Ten Hag.
The United manager prefers a midfield pairing of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, meaning the Brazilian has only made seven starts in all competitions this season. Extending Fred's contract strengthens the club's hand regarding any transfer negotiations for the player, but Ten Hag's latest comments imply he remains an important cog in his evolving machine.
