Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof has said he wanted to stay at Old Trafford despite reported interest from Spanish champions Barcelona in the summer transfer window.  

The Sweden international spoke to Expressen (h/t Goal's Chris Burton) about the transfer rumours and his desire to remain with the Red Devils.

"There was a lot of writing about it. But for me, I have a contract with United and I am the loyal type. For me it was never a question either, I wanted to stay in United and believe very much in what we have going on and that is also why I signed a new contract. I love to represent United and to wear that shirt every day.

"My goal when I came here was to win titles and do well for all supporters. But I haven't won a title yet, so it's my big goal to take home big titles with United. If we get to the level we can do and everyone can do their best, we can win trophies."

Lindelof's agent, Hasan Cetinkaya, told Aftonbladet (h/t Goal) in September that Barcelona wanted to sign the centre-back after missing out on Matthijs de Ligt to Juventus. Cetinkaya said the Spanish champions "contacted Ed Woodward on numerous occasions with concrete offers" but were told "no chance."

The Swede was brought to Old Trafford by Jose Mourinho in 2017 from Benfica but has had a mixed time with the Premier League club. He had a tough start and was guilty of some high-profile errors that attracted plenty of criticism, as noted by Samuel Luckhurst at the Manchester Evening News:

However, he improved and was arguably Manchester United's best defender last season, making 40 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils.

Lindelof's good form saw him rewarded with a new contract in September 2019 that is designed to keep him at the club until June 2024:

Yet his form has dipped this season alongside new signing Harry Maguire, and Manchester United have been poor defensively. The team have managed only two clean sheets in eight Premier League games.

Barcelona's interest in Lindelof came as something of a surprise, although there is a suggestion they need to strengthen defensively. Gerard Pique turned 32 in February, Samuel Umtiti struggled with injury last season, and 19-year-old Jean-Clair Todibo lacks top-level experience.