Gary Neville once slammed Aaron Wan-Bissaka as 'clueless' - and now Erik ten Hag must decide what to do with the out-of-favour Manchester United defender.
Ten Hag penned a three-year-deal with the club until 2025, with the option to extend a further year. This has left certain players' futures unclear as the Dutchman plans to rebuild his squad in major summer overhaul, having already reportedly identified eight key players.
Wan-Bissaka arrived at Old Trafford from Crystal Palace in 2019 under then manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Across the three seasons, he has played 126 games for the Red Devils but has been battling for a place in the squad since the emergence of Diogo Dalot.
In the early days at the club, however, Neville slammed his display against Liverpool and since then, the 24-year-old has failed to really make an impact in the team.
Following their 2-0 defeat to Liverpool back in 2020, Neville said: "He’s spinning everywhere. He hasn’t got a clue what’s going on in this game at the moment. But the play from Liverpool down that side is outstanding, and this is a different level for that lad to cope with.
"I used to play against Arsenal with [Ashley] Cole, [Thierry] Henry and [Robert] Pires and you felt like you were on the waltzers – he’s on the waltzers, Wan-Bissaka! Wan-Bissaka has had a good introduction at Manchester United. But I remember I had a couple of games here [at Anfield] as a right-back where I thought it was a different level."
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At the time, he also took the chance to comment on the club's recruitment over the last few years and added: "I can’t believe the investment that’s been put into the squad in the last five, six, seven years and you end up with that out on the pitch," he said back in 2020.
"I saw a statistic two weeks ago that United have the second-highest wage bill in the world. And that’s the squad they’ve got. It’s unforgivable. It really is. I can’t change the ownership of Manchester United, no one can.
"But I’m struggling to understand why the ownership have persisted in trusting that management team to oversee the building of a Premier League title-winning team since Sir Alex Ferguson left."
As reported by The Athletic, his former club are considering his return on a loan basis, with the defender still under contract until June 2024. Palace are said to be keen on Wan-Bissaka's return to Selhurst Park, to provide further competition to Nathaniel Clyne, Joel Ward and Tyrick Mitchell.
It remains to be seen what Ten Hag will decide to do, with interim boss Ralf Rangnick preferring to play Diogo Dalot at right-back this season. United's incoming boss has several options on the table, and may consider sending Wan-Bissaka on loan to Selhurst Park in a bid to get him more game time.
So, will he bring in a new right-back? Or will he give Wan-Bissaka the chance to impress in pre-season? He undoubtedly faces a huge decision as the right-back position is an area of concern, but Neville's old claims still remain a problem - and that will be a worry for Ten Hag.
