The size of the battle facing Harry Maguire at Manchester United has been laid bare by team-mate Luke Shaw.
Maguire lost his place in the starting line-up at the Red Devils after the first two games of the season. He has since been in the treatment room with a hamstring injury, missing both Europa League wins over Omonia Nicosia, as well as the last two Premier League matches.
In his absence, Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane have formed a mostly solid partnership at the heart of United's defence. With Maguire out of the side, Erik ten Hag 's men have kept four clean sheets in all competitions.
That has helped them to rise to fifth place in the Premier League table, bouncing back from a dreadful start to the campaign. On top of his side's form, Maguire has been hit with a fresh blow delivered by Shaw.
Martinez currently lines up in Maguire's position as the left-sided centre-back. And Shaw has admitted that United "need" to have the Argentine playing with his aggression and passion crucial to United's success, while conceding it "helps" to play with a left-footed centre-back, rather than a right-footer like Maguire.
"[He has been] unbelievable, to be honest. You can see everyone loves him. The fans love him. His left foot is unbelievable. I think it always helps when you play with a left-footer on the side because he naturally likes to come out to that side," Shaw said.
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"And I think he has fitted in really well. Of course, he can keep getting better and better, but for me so far, he has been unbelievable this season. He needs to keep that up. His aggression, his passion, we need him in that backline. He brings that every game. I am really pleased to have him in the team."
Martinez once again played all 90 minutes on Sunday as United secured a goal-less draw against Newcastle. He made two interceptions and seven recoveries, as well as winning all of his aerial duels and all of his tackles.
Maguire will now face a huge challenge to retake his place from the hands of Martinez. Ten Hag is certainly a huge fan of the defender, having brought him to Ajax, where he won the club's Player of the Year award last season.
With even his team-mates believing that Martinez is now crucial to their success, the challenge facing Maguire appears to be even greater. Whether he will be able to displace either Varane or Martinez remains to be seen.
At the present time though, it would appear that Maguire could be set for a long spell on the sidelines. The basis for successful teams is a solid defence, something the partnership of Varane and Martinez has handed to Ten Hag.
