The 26-year-old recently scored a stoppage-time brace to dig United out of a hole against Brentford, relieving the mounting pressure on manager Erik ten Hag after an inauspicious start to the season.
United had been trailing to Mathias Jensen’s first half goal at Old Trafford, which saw Andre Onana make another handling error, but McTominay made an immediate match-winning impact after being thrown on by Ten Hag late in the game.
McTominay’s exploits follow a remarkable run of goalscoring form for Scotland, who are on course to book a place at Euro 2024 despite losing 2-0 to Spain on Thursday night – he had a goal controversially disallowed in that game but has scored six goals in the seven internationals he’s played in 2023.
West Ham United made an approach for McTominay in the summer, bidding around £30m, but United resisted the temptation to sell. Instead, long-term midfield partner Fred was shipped off to Fenerbahce, and McTominay stayed put even though the club moved to bring in Sofyan Amrabat from Fiorentina to add further competition for places.
understands that United are in no hurry to part ways with McTominay, who is keen to remain at the club and continue proving his worth to Ten Hag. Their stance could be swayed if an interested party were to put forward an offer too good to turn down, but the expectation is that the Scot will remain at the club for at least the remainder of the season.
McTominay’s contract at United will have just a year to run by next summer, but the club crucially hold a 12-month extension option – something that is implemented in the majority of player contracts.
After being handed his debut by Jose Mourinho in 2017, academy graduate McTominay has gone on to play over 200 games in all competitions for United. He lifted his first trophy at the club last season, as Ten Hag oversaw victory in the Carabao Cup, and has twice picked up a runners-up medal in the FA Cup. He also played 11 games in the club’s run to the 2021 Europa League final.
Regular action has been harder to come by more recently, with McTominay’s cameo against Brentford taking him just past 180 minutes of Premier League football this season – the equivalent of two of United’s first eight games.
