Harry Maguire is set to miss out on yet another huge moment in his career, with injuries to blame.
England are preparing to play the Euro 2024 final, and Harry Maguire will be wishing he was there too.
Maguire missed England’s final cut for the squad, with Gareth Southgate deciding he could only afford to take one player battling injury, Luke Shaw. There is no doubt if Maguire was fit, he would have been selected ahead of Marc Guehi for the Three Lions.
Injuries are becoming a slight issue for Maguire, once regarded as highly durable. He missed the FA Cup Final too. He even missed the Europa League final in 2021 with injury.
Manchester United are making changes to the squad at centre-back and will be considering whether Maguire should be considered as an asset, or a hindrance, for the club.
Harry Maguire becoming surplus to needs
Lisandro Martinez is the defender regarded as the future of the club, key to the style that Erik ten Hag wishes to play.
Maguire is an excellent ball distributor, but for the partner of Martinez he needs something more. The manager needs someone quick and able to press, which Harry Maguire cannot do.
Lisandro Martinez therefore needs someone of a better profile.
Another reason for the issues around Harry Maguire’s future is that his output has been decreasing in recent seasons.
He once had outstanding data but looking at the table below his most recent season has seen some numbers seriously depreciating.
| Data Set | Maguire 2023/24 | Maguire 2022/23 |
| Tackles | 1.31 (32nd %) | 0.94 (17th %) |
| Interceptions | 1.36 (78th %) | 1.53 (79th %) |
| Blocks | 1.80 (83rd %) | 2.11 (92nd%) |
| Clearances | 4.52 (68th %) | 4.81 (78th%) |
| Aerials Won | 3.76 (92nd %) | 2.93 (80th %) |
The numbers in the table show that in many areas of his game that team require him for he has become progressively worse. What is worrying is that he already makes few tackles per 90 anyway, which is not what Erik ten Hag needs from a pressing centre back.
He has also lost his ability to block and intercept the ball, and he has seen a significant drop off in his clearances.
His aerials won has increased, but this is not good enough to make up for his lack of abilities that compliments Lisandro Martinez.
Harry Maguire growing injury concerns
Much like the rest of the Manchester United team, the 2023/24 campaign saw Maguire suffer his worst season for injuries.
The worry is that these are two long term muscular issues which come with a significant risk of re-injury. Couple this with his age, 31, and there are a lot of factors to worry about.
Previously the centre-back has had a very clear injury history, but in the space of two seasons he has had three significant muscular issues.
It may also bring into question if Harry Maguire can handle the physicality that Erik ten Hag requires from his players.
Moving Maguire on is the right call
In totality, his worrisome injuries, age and form builds an increased case for selling Harry Maguire.
His play style does not compliment Lisandro Martinez and is likely to be costly for the club in the long term if he continues to play in matches and is physically caught out.
There is also a clear physical decline in the reduction in his output as well as injuries. These more frequent injuries are only likely to get worse due to his age.
It would be sell the centre-back this summer and be able to offer the high wages he has to attract a top, young talent who properly fits the needs of the team, like Jarrad Branthwaite.
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/lfhE8qb