Man United should agree Harry Amass deal soon after impressive progress
Michael Carrick must give Harry Amass a chance to prove himself at Man United as they plan to extend his contract beyond next summer.
Amass, 19, failed to make his way into Carrick's first-team plans during pre-season after recovering from a serious hamstring injury.
The left-back was close to moving out on loan to either Wolves or Burnley, but stayed at United to fight for a place in the senior squad.
He has only featured once so far under Carrick this season despite concerns over his options at left-back and a failure to add to the position over the summer.
The Red Devils are now planning to automatically extend Amass' deal to 2028, which should give Carrick the go-ahead to hand him more game time this season.
It seems like a no-brainer to test Amass' suitability at the top level, particularly given his lofty potential and United's left-back woes.
Harry Amass deserves Man United chance as contract extension looms
Amass endured contrasting fortunes in his two Championship loan spells last season.
He shone for struggling Sheffield Wednesday in the first half of the campaign, registering a goal and an assist each in 21 appearances and winning back-to-back Player of the Month awards at Hillsborough.
Norwich City won the hotly contested race for his services in January as United decided to find him a more competitive team at the same level.
He suffered a long-term hamstring injury just days after making his debut for the club and was ruled out for the remainder of the campaign, only returning to action in pre-season under Carrick.
It is unclear why the 19-year-old has not been much fancied by the Red Devils boss so far in this campaign, despite impressing for their under-21s and clearly needing to play above that level.
Journalist Steven Railston has reported that the club are planning to extend Amass' contract by 12 months as he nears the end of his initial deal in June 2027.
They are doing so to "give themselves some breathing space and to protect Amass' value" ahead of next summer, but the move should also incentivise Carrick to increase his minutes in the coming months.
United's packed schedule with league, cup and Champions League games should see him become a viable option, and he would represent a much cheaper solution to their left-back issues than a new signing.
Carrick has motivated Amass to impress despite lack of minutes
It does seem as if Carrick has not completely closed the door on Amass becoming a first-team regular as he competes for places with Luke Shaw and Patrick Dorgu.
The United boss has praised Amass on two separate occasions this season, the first in September as he said: "We’ve been really pleased with Harry, he had a really good season that didn't end so well with the injury, he’s done really well in pre-season.”
While he also admitted his pleasure at being able to bring him on in their 4-0 Champions League win over Sabah last month, saying: "I'm delighted with being able to get Harry on the pitch - and Shea [Lacey]. It's important, it's something we were focused on as the game developed. It's important to get the younger boys on the pitch for this football club, so I'm pleased with both of them."
It surely now makes sense to give him a better chance to impress as the club prepare to potentially keep him on their books for longer than the next nine months.