Erik ten Hag’s first big call as Manchester United manager raises as many questions as it answers. Harry Maguire will remain captain, we know that much. But what does that say of the future of Cristiano Ronaldo? The pursuit of Lisandro Martinez or plans for Raphael Varane.
There is a knock-on effect that goes beyond the initial furore on social media in response to the Dutchman’s words of support in Bangkok on Monday.
Ten Hag has set his stall out from the start and offered his backing to Maguire, who cut a besieged figure for much of last season.
Turned on by the same England fans who adopted him as a cult icon at the World Cup in 2018 and last year’s Euros – and ultimately dumped by Ralf Rangnick at the end of last season, the 29-year-old has endured a crisis of form unlike any he has experienced before.
Ten Hag is banking on his own ability to restore Maguire to the player United were prepared to make the most expensive defender of all time – and whom Pep Guardiola wanted to install at the heart of his own defence before Manchester City were priced out.
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Ten Hag has focused his early work on the training ground on building out from the back and working in tight spaces.
Crucially for Maguire, United’s pursuit of ball-playing midfielders in the form of Frenkie de Jong and Christian Eriksen is designed to provide options for defenders that were rarely there under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
This will be a very different United – one that is expected to cherish possession and help ease the pressure on players bringing the ball out from defence.
In only a short space of time, Maguire may also be feeling the benefit of elite coaching under this new regime.
While, personally, it was a season to forget last term, it is no coincidence that his form went into even more dramatic decline under Rangnick, following the departures of coaches Kieran McKenna and Michael Carrick.
United’s interim manager failed to bring in the staff he had hoped to employ on a short-term basis, with only Chris Armas and Sascha Lense to assist him, while technical director, Darren Fletcher, stepped in to try to offer continuity.
It left United desperately short on the training ground, with Rangnick largely leaving the coaching to his staff.
Maguire was not alone in feeling the impact of that talent drain – but became a symbol of United’s ills.
On Monday, we witnessed Ten Hag – the man-manager. But rebuilding Maguire will be more about the coaching side of the job.
He is not the only United player in recent years to beg the question: How much better would they be under Guardiola or Jurgen Klopp?
Maguire’s pace has never been his strong-point – rather his use of the ball. But that was negated in a team not constructed to keep possession.
In that sense, he should benefit from Ten Hag’s philosophy – and it would also explain the manager’s faith in him.
Ten Hag will also have known the significance of declaring Maguire his captain in the context of Ronaldo’s future.
He will have been made aware of tension within the dressing room – and suggestions Maguire felt undermined by the Portuguese legend, which impacted his confidence.
The captaincy could have been offered as an incentive in United’s bid to convince Ronaldo to abandon his attempts to leave this summer.
It could have been sold to Ronaldo as the chance to write a new chapter in his legacy at the club in the manner of Eric Cantona guiding through the 'Class of 92'.
In the absence of Champions League football, which is the 37-year-old’s priority, he doesn’t even have the honour of following in the footsteps of United’s other iconic captains.
In the high stakes world of negotiations with Ronaldo and his agent, Jorge Mendes, that was a big option to remove from the table.
Given the captain is also expected to play the majority of the games, it raises further questions over Martinez, whom United are in the process of trying to sign from Ajax for around £40 million ($48m).
Ten Hag sees him as a ball-playing centre back to operate on the left of his defence – which is Maguire's position.
That would see Maguire move over to the right, on his preferred foot, which leaves Varane the odd man out.
While Varane hardly lived up to his reputation as one of the all-time great centre backs in his first season at United, it would be a spectacular fall for him to find himself on the fringes.
Of course, Ten Hag will rotate his squad, but a settled defence will be key.
No one would welcome that more than Maguire.
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