Manchester United started the new season the same way it ended the previous one, succumbing to humiliating defeats at the hands of Brighton and Brentford.
Erik ten Hag was forced to tweak his system and make personnel changes and United have since completed a mini-renaissance and are currently riding a four-game winning streak in the league.
Maguire’s fall from grace
However, those adjustments have seen some casualties and one of the prominent names to fall out of favor with the Dutch manager is club captain Harry Maguire.
He’s started three times this season, and the stats make for a bleak reading. United have lost all of those games and have conceded seven goals, including 0-4 at the hands of the Bees.
Apart from the game against Real Sociedad, the England captain has been on the pitch for a total of 11 minutes, which includes a 1-minute cameo against Sheriff Tiraspol, where he should have started.
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— ODDSbible (@ODDSbible) September 15, 2022
Ten Hag is clearly relying on his first-choice pairing of Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez to get the job done and that has meant the 29-year-old has had to settle for a place on the bench.
Nobody could have expected such a fall from grace after two great seasons at United and a stellar role for the Three Lions at the last European Championship. But a bad season last year and the arrival of Martinez have played a role.
Sources close to the former Leicester City centre-back have told ESPN that his team-mates and managers have not helped him and that has led to this dramatic drop in form.
“Harry needs rhythm around him, but he hasn’t had that. If you put [Man City’s] Rubén Dias in the United defense and Harry in the City defense, Dias would struggle and Harry would prosper.
“Harry hasn’t had a good 12 months, but those around him (coaches or players) haven’t helped him, so it’s inevitable that his confidence and form have suffered.”
DDG blamed for Camp Maguire
One player whose name has been verified by Maguire’s team is goalkeeper David de Gea. The Spaniard has also struggled to adapt to Ten Hag’s methods and has continued to be a liability when it comes to using his feet and getting off the line.
“Sources have said that Maguire’s frustrations with goalkeeper David de Gea’s communication and his reluctance to defend further from his goal line were also a factor in the defense’s general malaise last season.
“That problem has been ameliorated by the arrival of Argentine defender Martinez from Ajax and his ability to communicate and instruct De Gea in Spanish,” the ESPN article reiterated.
The only reason De Gea has continued to be a starter is because of the lack of a quality alternative, something that could be remedied in the future.
As for Maguire, his chance to impress Ten Hag will come via the familiar route of international football. If he can impress against Italy and Germany, the United manager could opt to start him in Europa League games.
Maguire is going through one of his toughest times and the timing couldn’t have been worse with the World Cup just a couple of months away.
The next three months could prove decisive if the club captain is forced to jump ship or if he is able to continue on the same ship.
