Harry Maguire’s role at Man United diminished further last week when the defender was stripped of the captain’s armband by Erik ten Hag and the Dutch coach has now clarified how the England star will be used throughout the upcoming campaign.
Losing the captaincy would have been a big blow to Maguire as Bruno Fernandes now takes up the role. The centre-back would have been hoping that the armband would help him gain more minutes but now that it is gone, the defender looks like he will be a rotation player for Ten Hag.
Speaking about Maguire today, the Man United boss confirmed as much. The former Ajax boss stated that the Englishman is very important to his squad and that he will need four good centre-backs for the season – with the 30-year-old likely number four.
“We respect Harry Maguire – he’s very important for this squad, for this team. And, you know, in his role as centre-back, we have four centre-backs,” Ten Hag said via Fabrizio Romano.
“I talked about consistency, we know we can’t do it with 11 players and so I’m happy we have four very good centre-backs”.
Ten Hag: “We respect Harry Maguire — he’s very important for this squad, for this team. And, you know, in his role as CB, we have four CBs”. ? #MUFC
“I talked about consistency, we know we can't do it with 11 players and so I'm happy we have four very good CBs”. pic.twitter.com/W4pKcflesh
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 21, 2023
It remains to be seen if Maguire leaves Man United this summer as several clubs have been linked with a move for the Englishman.
A move late in the window may be on the cards when the defender realises over the first few games of the campaign that he does not have an important role at the Manchester club and with the EUROS happening next summer, the centre-back will need regular minutes in order to get a place in Gareth Southgate’s squad.