The current international break may be advantageous for certain of Manchester United’s players this season.
During international breaks, managers typically cross their fingers and hope that their players are healthy enough to return to club duty. The goal is to get through the break and resume play with your squad still in place.
Given the injury crisis that has already beset Manchester United this season, Erik ten Hag will have done plenty of that over the past nine days. Lisandro Martinez’s decision to represent Argentina despite ongoing foot trouble will be of particular worry.
Given his public argument with Jadon Sancho and the allegations surrounding Antony in Brazil that have caused the winger to miss the remainder of the season with his club, it is questionable how much attention Ten Hag has paid to another unimpressive round of qualifiers for a competition that almost half of Europe qualifies for.
However, United may still benefit from playing on the international stage, particularly this year. Two players in particular, who might have departed last summer and are likely candidates to be sold in 2024, will use it as a platform.
This season, Harry Maguire and Scott McTominay’s playing time for United could be further cut. For Ten Hag, the center-back has fallen behind Victor Lindelof in the hierarchy, and McTominay is now up against Sofyan Amrabat and Kobbie Mainoo for the starting spot.
In those conditions, it can be difficult to maintain their ideals and find a venue to showcase their capabilities to interested teams, but international games will present an opportunity to reaffirm their virtues to prospective suitors.
In McTominay’s instance, he actually is doing it. The 26-year-old midfielder scored six goals in five games while playing as an all-action midfielder, propelling Scotland to the top of a group that also contains Spain and is one of the major tales of this campaign.
Although McTominay has played as a holding midfielder for United, his best position is arguably in a box-to-box position. He has occasionally displayed his skill in the opposition’s penalty area for his club, but Steve Clarke has freed him for Scotland and he now appears to be a completely different player. If he continues in this vein, his performances for his nation may be enough to keep his value high going into next summer.
He still doesn’t seem to suit the Ten Hag methodology, in my opinion. McTominay isn’t the most reliable or fluid passer; he occasionally loses possession, which Ten Hag detests. But when he switches from the red of United to the navy blue of Scotland, it’s easy to see that he has the skills of a roving midfielder.
On Tuesday at Hampden Park, a game honoring the 150th anniversary of the first encounter between England and Scotland will pit McTominay against a few United teammates.
Even while his reputation as some sort of comic villain has extended to supporters of a national team he has never let down, Maguire is the one who needs those England matches to keep match fitness and remind people what he is capable of.
It has been two years since the 30-year-old, who was a center back of the true international caliber at the last European Championships, was selected for the tournament squad of the tournament. He hasn’t performed at that level for United since.
This summer, Maguire had the option of signing with West Ham, and he will almost probably leave the club next year. He won’t have many opportunities at Old Trafford to make his case for a transfer. He may participate in Carabao Cup contests and the FA Cup’s preliminary rounds, but it is already obvious where he stands in Ten Hag’s mind.
Thus, despite the fact that some find his continued inclusion in the England team to be controversial, his national team performances can lead to a transfer. Maguire deserves to be in the starting lineup, and United need Gareth Southgate to maintain doing so.
A strong tournament in Germany could be crucial to finding the kind of move he wants if he is to leave United if he can defeat the challenge of younger central defenders like Marc Guehi and Levi Colwill to stay a starter there next summer.
