Manchester United captain Harry Maguire is being backed to 'stake a claim' for returning to manager Erik ten Hag's regular starting XI in what is expected to be a rare outing against Nottingham Forest.
The England international was, though, not part of the squad against Burnley for the midweek Carabao Cup fourth round tie, despite club and country teammates Luke Shaw and Marcus Rashford both featuring. Instead, Casemiro, who was also returning from representing Brazil at the World Cup, dropped into the Man United defence as the partner to Victor Lindelöf.
Ten Hag later confirmed that Maguire was "sick" and said that they "will see" about the player's availability against Forest. If available, former England and Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott believes that Maguire has a 'huge chance' ahead of him against the Reds.
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"I’m expecting (Maguire) to start at the heart of United’s defence against Nottingham Forest with finalists Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane returning slightly later," Lescott told LiveScore.
"Both those players will have a totally different level of emotion following that nail-biting final between Argentina and France, and it's a good chance for the England man to stake his claim for a return to Erik ten Hag’s XI.
"Does it mean he'll come back and play every minute of every game for the Red Devils? Probably not, but he's given himself a huge chance having performed the way he did in Qatar."
Lescott also said that "it should be a comfortable home win at Old Trafford" for the hosts. A 3-1 win is what the player-turned-pundit predicts.
What is your prediction if Maguire is playing? Have your say in the comments...
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