RUMOURS surfaced ahead of Bury’s trip to Glanford Park that in-form defender Pablo Mills was on the radar of a number of other clubs.

But those concerns were promptly snuffed out after the final whistle as the former Derby County centre-back confirmed he was in talks with the Shakers board to extend his contract past the end of the current season.

“I think something special is happening here. I love challenges and I think the club is going in the right direction and I would love to be a part of that,” he said.

“In football you never know what is going to happen, but I would like to stay if the gaffer wants me and hopefully we will get things sorted soon.”

Manager David Flitcroft also confirmed talks were at an advanced stage, but refused to get too carried away until the contract extension had been signed and sealed.

“We have had verbal communications that he wants to lead next season, but agents sometimes swerve things in a different direction so we will have to wait and see.

“But I think he has found a home here.

“He’s found something that he wants to be part of and we’ve got a great understanding with each other. He knows why I wanted to bring him in and he’s delivered.”

Bury have only been beaten twice since Mills’ debut against Burton Albion in mid-January, in which time the 29-year-old has helped the Shakers keep nine clean sheets in his 17 appearances.

While he admits to settling in off the pitch, the experienced defender has really come to the fore on it over the last month, guiding the club through an exhausting run of fixtures with calm authority.

“From the first day I came here I have been made to feel welcome. I’ve felt at home and I have enjoyed playing every game,” said Mills, after falling out of favour at previous club Rotherham, who picked him up as a free agent in the summer.

“I think people wrote me off at the start of the season but I stuck in there and the gaffer has given me a chance and I think I have shown a bit of form and what I can do.

“I’ve come a long way.

“In the summer I didn’t have a club. I was training on my own and things were starting to look bad.

“But I hung in there and since the gaffer brought me in I have been playing every week and showing good form.”