Erik ten Hag has told Harry Maguire that he can still salvage his Manchester United career - but it's down to him to replicate his England form and make it happen.
Maguire has impressed for his country at the World Cup, but he headed into the tournament in horrific form. The 29-year-old has been fiercely scrutinised over the past 12 months after a string of calamitous performances for United, but crucially retained the support of national team boss Gareth Southgate.
After rebuilding his reputation in Qatar, Maguire now faces the challenge of winning back his first-team spot at United after being leapfrogged by both Raphael Varane and summer recruit Lisandro Martinez.
There had been speculation surrounding Maguire's future prior to the tournament, with some reports suggesting that the former Leicester man could be poised to depart Old Trafford. But with Varane and Martinez set to be involved at the World Cup for the final week of action, Maguire is in line to start for United when they resume their Premier League campaign against Nottingham Forest on 27 December.
And Ten Hag has once again stressed that there is a spot for Maguire at Manchester United - as long as the centre-back has the appetite to fight for his spot.
"Only if he doesn’t want to be in these circumstances anymore," said Ten Hag when he was asked if Maguire could still leave Old Trafford. "Until that moment, I am happy with him. I have said it to him and you, I can do nothing more. It is up to him to contribute to play himself into the team."
Join the debate! Do you think Maguire can salvage his Man Utd career after his performances at the World Cup? Let us know here.
Although Maguire has struggled for form domestically, he has, mostly, been solid for England, where he has continued to be selected regularly.
After insisting before the World Cup that Maguire would retain his spot in the team, Southgate and England were rewarded with a string of commanding performances from Maguire, who looked back to his best alongside long-time defensive partner John Stones.
After expressing his disappointment following England's quarter-final defeat to France on Saturday night, Maguire came out swinging and insisted he was "proud" of himself after proving some of his doubters wrong.
Speaking after the match, Maguire said: "I’ve played every game and I’m proud of my mentality to prove to myself again - I don’t need to prove to others - but at the moment, I don’t look at myself, I look at the team and every time I put this shirt on, I want the team to do well. Listen I’d have much preferred to have had a bad game against France and gone through."
