The World Cup is over and we return to club football. Fifteen Manchester United players went to Qatar, one returned with a trophy.
Several United players have come out of the tournament with improved reputations, but one in particular, Harry Maguire, has returned in a blaze of glory. But should we let ourselves go?
As a United fan, it was wonderful to see Maguire perform so well in the competition – he was named in Sky Sports’ Team of the Tournament – and some so-called pundits, such as Danny Murphy, now argue that he should be reinstated to United. side.
It has often been said that Maguire thrives for England because he plays in back three, but that was not the case at this World Cup. So is it a case of “he’s back”? Or is it just the England setup that gets the best of him? Or is international soccer an entirely different beast?
A little of each is the most likely answer to the question. But Maguire’s future at United depends on proportions. How much of this renaissance is due to improved form? Because the other two reasons are of no use to Erik ten Hag.
Suddenly, Maguire hasn’t gotten faster or improved his turning radius. If United are going to play a high line, those elements are crucial. It seems unlikely that Ten Hag would be willing to sacrifice that staple of his match strategy just to accommodate a defender, no matter how good he is at what he does, and no matter that he’s the captain.
It’s also about having a quick mind: being a reader of the game. Almost invariably, Premier League football is much, much faster than international football; in fact, it is probably the fastest in the world. Will Maguire ever be equipped for that pace?
He’s also turning 30 soon, so his reaction speed won’t improve and may actually start to slow slightly.
Ten Hag has said he wants Maguire at the club, and why wouldn’t he? If the England man is happy to play a role from the bench, being brought in when United are under pressure and defending in depth, for example, then he would be an asset.
But it seems unlikely that Harry would be happy to do that, his age, again, being very relevant. The 29th is not the time to start warming up on the bench.
One of the players Maguire was brought in to replace, Chris Smalling, has excelled in the slower Serie A and it’s easy to imagine Maguire could do the same.
With Ten Hag unlikely to be going anywhere anytime soon, United’s style of play is unlikely to change much and sadly it looks as if Maguire could be the best defender in the world in terms of any particular skill set and It will, however, remain a poor fit for the Dutchman’s system.
