Manchester United officially announced last night that Nathan Bishop has signed a new two-and-half-year contract with the club, with the goalkeeper’s deal including the option of a further year.
Bishop has featured for Manchester United’s Under-23s once since joining from Southend last January, in an EFL Trophy tie that came against Salford, the ace celebrated a clean sheet in 6-0 win.
The 6ft1 keeper first showed his real promise at the end of the 16/17 season for Southend, he debuted for the Shrimpers in the 17/18 campaign and then became an important player around the halfway stage of the 18/19 season.
Bishop’s outings after that led to United recruiting the ace in January 2020 and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has now confirmed, per the club’s article, that the ace will head out on loan ‘shortly’.
The use of ‘shortly’ and the decision to extend Bishop’s contract now perhaps suggests that a loan will be found for the 21-year-old during this month’s transfer window.
With Bishop having made 30 appearances for Southend in League One before his transfer – and before they were relegated, it’s fair to assume that this is the level of side that the ace will head out to.
The inclusion of a one-year option is very smart by the Red Devils, leaving them protected in regards to his development – and also not tied into a long deal for a player that’s still very young.