Aston Villa midfielder Glenn Whelan has confirmed that he is still to make a decision over his future at the club.
The 35-year-old’s contract at Villa Park is set to expire this summer, after his move from Stoke City on a two-year deal in the summer of 2017.
Eighty-five time Republic of Ireland international Whelan has been a mainstay within Dean Smith’s team this season, being available for all but one of the 47 Championship games played so far.
Speaking to the Birmingham Mail, however, the midfielder confirmed that he has – as yet – held no discussions with the manager about his future.
“It’s not an issue, I signed a two-year contract to get this club back in the Premier League,” Whelan said. “I was a whisker away last year. Hopefully I have a chance this year.
“I have not spoken to the manager about it. Everyone at the club is just waiting to see. I am never knocking on doors or busting down doors to find what is happening.
“I keep my head down and hopefully, if we get the win, something will happen. I am worried about Monday and getting the right result before anything else.”
OPINION
Villa fans will be hoping that Whelan stays at the club next season. He has been a great servant for the club this season, being unavailable for only one game – the Championship tie against Hull City in January. But apart from that, Whelan has either played or been on the bench for every other league game under Smith this term, and he is a great person to have around due to his reliability in the middle of the park. Although he had that awful error that led to Dwight Gayle’s opener in the play-off semi-final against West Brom, in the end it did not matter much as Smirth’s side progressed. But as Whelan says, the biggest focus for now should be getting Villa promoted to the Premier League. After all, that is what he signed up to do. If he can do that, there is a great chance Whelan will stay on. In any case, there is no doubt the midfielder has served his side well in the past two seasons and will be thanked by the Villa fans if he does leave.