Erik ten Hag has admitted Harry Maguire has a ‘decision’ to make about on his own Manchester United future this summer.
Despite being the club captain, Maguire has been on the periphery of the Red Devils’ first team squad for the majority of the 2022/23 season, making just eight Premier League starts.
That dramatic drop down the Man Utd pecking order has been largely due to the signing of two first-choice quality centre-backs in Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane who, when fit, have struck an impressive partnership at the heart of the backline.
When asked about Maguire’s future by The Times, manager Ten Hag insisted the he’s happy to have the defender at the club, but also understands why he’d be keen to leave this summer.
“He has high competition there with Raphael Varane, who’s fantastic,” Ten Hag began.
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“No one would be happy with this situation [not playing]. He’s not as well. He trains always on best levels, with 100% effort.
“So he handles that situation well and he’s in that manner and in his captaincy he’s important for the squad. Let’s say I’m happy he’s here and when we needed him he did his job, but it’s also a decision he has to make [over whether he leaves].”
90min recently reported that Maguire is attracting interest from a number of top clubs in Serie A, with Juventus, AC Milan and Inter all interested in potential loan deals with an option to buy.
Central to Maguire’s decision could be his international prospects after England manager Gareth Southgate recently confessed he will struggle to continue selecting the 30-year-old if he remains on the United fringes.
“Inevitably it’s not a situation that can continue on forever,” Southgate explained.
