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This article is part of Football FanCast's Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news...

According to The Daily Mail, Manchester United goalkeeper Dean Henderson is closing in on signing a new contract at the club before heading back to Sheffield United on loan.

What's the word?

The report claims that negotiations over a new deal for the England U21 international are "well underway and have been positive", and that part of the talks have revolved around Henderson being allowed to go out on loan once more.

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It adds that United see the 22-year-old as a future number one at Old Trafford and are keen for him to get regular playing time in the Premier League - something he would get at Sheffield United having helped the Blades to promotion from the Championship last season.

It was initially indicated by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that Henderson would link up with the United squad on the second part of their pre-season tour in Singapore, but the report claims that the goalkeeper has remained behind in England to find a resolution to his future.

Could this year have been his best chance?

Whilst there will be understandable excitement if Henderson does indeed put pen to paper on a new deal at United, the situation surrounding the man he will eventually be competing with at Old Trafford makes for bleak reading for the Englishman.

Reports in recent weeks have suggested that David De Gea is inching closer to signing a new contract of his own, and whilst the premise of Henderson being seen as a future number one is admirable, just when will that future come?

De Gea will only turn 29 this November despite seemingly being around for ever, and in goalkeeper terms, he is still a relative baby, and could quite conceivably play for another decade - just ask 41 year-old Gianluigi Buffon.

De Gea's rough year by his own standards last season should surely have warranted Henderson the chance to prove he could step in right away. In his entire Premier League career, De Gea has made just ten errors that have directly lead to a goal; last year he had four alone.

Henderson on the other hand came off the back of a stellar campaign with Sheffield United, as the second-placed Blades conceded just 41 goals in 46 games; the joint-best record in the division.

This summer felt like it could have been a watershed moment for Henderson's potential career at Old Trafford; instead, he may well get lost in the wilderness of season-long loans for the entirety of De Gea's stay.