Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho wants defender Matteo Darmian to stay at the club next season, according to ESPN.
The sports news outlet claims that the Portuguese manager is desperate to keep the 27-year-old this summer despite interest from Italian clubs.
This follows up from the recent story in the Sun which reported that Serie A champions Juventus want to sign the Italian full-back as a replacement for outgoing defender Dani Alves.
It is reported that Inter Milan are another club who are closely monitoring Darmian’s situation at Old Trafford.
ESPN claims that the defender could be allowed to leave the Manchester giants but only if he asks to depart and the club receive an acceptable offer.
The report claims that Mourinho is keen to keep the defender as he is capable of playing in a variety of positions, which helped the team in the latter stages of last season when they suffered a string of injuries.
Darmian will be desperate to see more regular first-team action as he sets his sights on being selected for the Italy national team for next year’s World Cup in Russia.
The Italian managed to make 29 appearances for United in all competitions last season.
The defender was often selected in the big matches as Mourinho started him in the home win against Chelsea in April and the Europa League victory over Ajax in May.
Darmian’s current contract at Old Trafford runs out in 2019.