Nottingham Forest defender Michael Dawson could retire following the expiration of his playing contract at the end of the season - and it's likely that the club will offer him a coaching role, per Paul Taylor of The Athletic.
The 37-year-old has found game-time impossible to come by this season, not playing a single minute of action as he has seemingly been phased out of his playing career.
Dawson's last competitive appearance for Forest was back in July, when they lost 1-0 to Barnsley, and it remains to be seen as to whether Dawson plays for the Tricky Trees again.
You'd have to imagine that he will get a few minutes in the final game of the season if there is nothing to play for, Dawson will get his final run-out, but it looks like he has options beyond the end of the season.
Dawson has been doing a lot of punditry this season, especially on Sky Sports, but Taylor has reported the possibility of the veteran moving into a coaching role at the club.
That could potentially be with the under-23's, who are currently managed by Andy Reid as of January and it would give Dawson the chance to link up once again with the player who he joined Tottenham Hotspur alongside in 2005 when the pair were up-and-comers.
But there's a chance that Dawson could end up being fast-tracked into being a first-team coach due to him being a 'respected voice in the dressing room', and it could be the first step to him becoming a manager down the line.
The Verdict
It remains to be seen whether or not Dawson wants to go down the coaching route, but basing off his playing career he is a born leader.
A career in punditry would probably be wasted on the defender and he could make a real difference if he were to be coaching Forest's talented youngsters coming through the ranks.
One thing Forest fans will be hoping for though is for Dawson to get on the pitch this season - they'll have likely wrapped up their Championship safety before the final game of the season and they'll be wanting to see him in the red shirt one last time before he presumably hangs his boots up.