Gavin Gunning has given a heavy hint that he is about to pledge his future to Dundee United.
The Irishman’s current deal runs out in the summer but there appears to be a good chance that he will soon join the growing number of Tangerines agreeing to stay.
The club did a brilliant bit of business earlier this week when they secured bright young star Ryan Gauld until 2017, while Stuart Armstrong, John Souttar, Nadir Ciftci and Andrew Robertson have all put pen to paper in recent weeks and months.
Perhaps crucially, Gunning feels he is playing alongside “the best young Scottish players.” Now the central defender United picked up from Blackburn Rovers in August 2011 looks likely to say yes to manager Jackie McNamara.
Asked if he would be open to remaining at Tannadice, Gunning said: “Yes. Obviously I have been weighing my options up but if we can get something sorted then great.
“I have a lot of things to consider but it’s definitely an option.”
The defender added: “The situation is ongoing and I am still talking to the club to see how we are progressing. What I will do is wait and see what happens.
“For sure, these are exciting times to be at United. You just have to look at what’s on the pitch to know what these boys are capable of.
“It is great that we have the best young Scottish players at Tannadice. We can go through them all listing them. Along with Gauldy, there is Soapy (Souttar), Robbo (Robertson), Stuart and GMS (Gary Mackay-Steven) as well as the other lads.”
Despite the new contract for Gauld, Gunning would not be surprised if, before too long, United get an offer for the player which they can’t refuse.
“It is obviously good for the club to tie Ryan down for a bit longer,” added Gunning. “However, I am sure it’s only a matter of time before top teams in the English Premiership come in for him because that is the standard of side he is capable of playing for.
“At the moment, I would say Ryan is probably the best player in the league. That is how good he is.
“The great thing for us, though, is that he is just a laid-back character a bit like myself! Nothing bothers him and he does all his talking on the pitch.”
As well as the persistent speculation surrounding Gauld, Everton are reportedly keen to land United left-back Robertson.
Again, Gunning isn’t surprised to see his young teammate being spoken of in that manner.
He said: “There will be a lot of talk in the papers and I do think it’s only natural that’s what is happening. That is football for you.”
The Tangerines host struggling Ross County on Saturday and on current form could be expected to sweep the Highlanders aside.
Gunning argued, however, that while United can reach another level, they will still have to be wary of any opposition.
“There is more to come from this side and, funnily enough, we have not even played our best stuff in the past few games but are still managing four and five goals,” he said.
“That is amazing and I think we can only get better. However, there is a possibility that the fans are maybe expecting too much from us right now.
“What we need from them as players is patience. Hopefully, they don’t get too over the top, expecting four goals in every game because when you look at the league you see Hearts beating Aberdeen, for example, which wasn’t expected.
“So you can’t take anything for granted. Ross County are a tough team to play against and we will need to be at our best to beat them.”