Ten Hag’s Maguire prediction rings true as Man Utd man impresses for England
Erik ten Hag’s prediction that Harry Maguire would return to form looks to have been spot-on following his starring role for England.
The Manchester United defender was handed a place in the starting line-up for their World Cup opener on Monday afternoon – a decision that looked to be a contentious one by Gareth Southgate considering Maguire’s indifferent club form for the Red Devils. He has fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford due to a few unconvincing performances earlier in the campaign.
The former Leicester star found himself behind the likes of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane, with major questions being asked about his suitability for England for the World Cup itself.
Regardless, Southgate kept faith with the defender for the opening game of the tournament and he was rewarded handsomely. Maguire was unfortunate to have been denied a penalty in the opening minutes of the clash against Iran before he then assisted Arsenal starlet Bukayo Saka as he doubled England’s lead following Jude Bellingham’s opener.
Away from that, Maguire also represented a strong presence at the heart of the Three Lions’ backline – albeit on a relatively straightforward afternoon against Iran.
It remains to be seen whether Maguire is really back to the form that convinced United to pay a world record fee on him. There was still a dicey moment as despite keeping Mehdi Taremi – Porto star and arguably Iran’s best player – quiet for the majority of the game, he still lost him once as the striker fired home a consolation.
Regardless, Red Devils’ boss Ten Hag saw Maguire’s resurgence for his side and England coming some time ago, with his faith in his club captain having never wavered despite his tricky spell of form. Speaking in September, he said: “I have to back him [Maguire] but I back him because I believe in him.
“In the period I worked with him in pre-season was good, really good, training and games, so then he fell out [of the team] but it’s also to do with the centre-backs playing now and even after he wasn’t in the team he trained really well and the quality was there.
“What you see is high potential. In the dressing room, the coaches and the players believe in him. That’s what I told him. I’m sure he can do it and I’m convinced of that.”
Following England’s emphatic victory against Iran, Maguire will hope to keep catching the eye of Southgate throughout the remainder of the tournament. The Three Lions’ next group match pitches them against the USA on Friday evening before then taking on fellow home nation Wales next Tuesday.
Should he appear against the US then Maguire will chalk up a half-century of caps for the England side having made his debut back in 2017 but he has to prove his fitness first. The centre-back was withdrawn midway through the second half having seemingly been taken off as a concussion substitute.
