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England’s World Cup campaign in Qatar starts in less than two months and the pressure on Gareth Southgate is mounting. The Three Lions manager successfully led England to a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and a European Championship final in 2021, but that’s not enough to satisfy fans.
That’s why selection for this year’s tournament is more important than ever and Manchester United defender Raphael Varane is ruining Southgate’s plans. The France international has revived his career at Old Trafford, pushing Harry Maguire further out of the picture.
As a result, Maguire’s place in the England squad has been called into question. Fans have called for the Manchester United captain to be dropped to Southgate’s side, while the England manager has said he will stay with the centre-back.
Maguire is now under pressure to perform for the national team. He has a lot to live up to after Varane knocked it out of the park against Austria on Thursday night.
Varane led the French team to a 2-0 win in their UEFA Nations League match, playing the full 90 minutes to eliminate all fitness issues. He also ruled out striker Marko Arnautovic.
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Southgate has just under two months to decide who will board the plane to Qatar
The French media praised the defender’s performance. Former footballer Rio Mavuba even said: ‘Varane is the boss, the big brother of this’ [France] squad and he is especially important in the absence of certain older players.
“It shows how important he is after a tough year. He was with Real Madrid for a long time and then there was this transfer to Manchester United and minor issues. But we saw that even the big ones sometimes need time to adapt. He’s coming back to his best now.’
Meanwhile, Maguire has played just 11 minutes of Premier League football since being dropped by Erik ten Hag after United’s disastrous 4-0 defeat to Brentford on August 13. To make matters worse, those 11 minutes of football were only awarded to him as a result of Lisandro Martinez’s injury against Arsenal.
The Three Lions manager successfully led England to a 2018 World Cup semi-final and a 2021 European Championship final, but that’s not enough to please fans
That’s why Southgate is under pressure to select the right team for the upcoming tournament
Gareth Southgate – who said he would never select an England squad ‘by reputation’ after taking the job in 2016 – has said Maguire’s situation at United is far from ideal. However, he has chosen to support the defender despite his difficulties at club level.
Three Lions boss said: ‘Obviously it’s not an ideal situation’ [with Maguire]. We’re only a few weeks away from pre-season so physically, if they’ve had a couple of 90 minutes, that’s fine. Another seven to eight weeks, that’s starting to get more complicated.
“But he is an important player for us and it is important to support our best players. Whatever reputation I have, I’ll put it on it. He is our most dominant central defender in the air.”
Harry Maguire’s place on the team is threatened after United pecking order
Varane has rediscovered some of his best for Manchester United after struggling last season
According to Southgate, Maguire has played a vital role in England’s success over the years – he claimed Maguire played a key role in reaching the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup and the European Championship final in 2021.
Southgate said ‘Maguire and John [Stones] are incredible with the ball – the amount of pressure they’ve put on the team in tournaments because we don’t always have that midfielder who can move the game forward. It means there’s a lot more pressure on our central defenders to use the ball well and those two are just as good at it as they are in world football.”
Maguire’s form for Manchester United, however, would prove otherwise.
The 29-year-old was responsible for Brentford’s first goal, their 4-0 win over United. It came as a result of Maguire’s inability to find a pass down the right side of the field. As a result, the ball went out for a throw-in – setting up the attack from which Brentford scored.
Varane suffered an injury during his international service last year after signing for United
Varane’s condition was considered a problem last season after he had to sit out 17 games due to injury
Maguire was also responsible for Brighton’s second goal in their Premier League game on August 7. He left his role as a right central defender and moved to the left side of the field.
He tried to tackle the player who was right in front of Martinez, but failed and ended up knocking himself and his United teammate out of the game. Brighton broke through and scored.
Not only has he struggled to assert his dominance on the field, he has also struggled to assert it on the field. He failed to demonstrate the leadership qualities for which he was once praised. He was unable to bring United’s unrelated group of players together last season and instead added to the problem by calling out players like Cristiano Ronaldo.
As a result, Maguire’s ‘must play status’ at United has disappeared. He has really brought down the pecking order under Ten Hag, who favors Martinez and Varane as his defensive pair.
Varane’s condition was considered a problem last season after he had to sit out 17 games due to an injury. However, the Dutch manager confirmed that Varane participated in specialized training sessions ahead of the 2022-2023 campaign to increase his robustness.
Since then, the French international has represented Manchester United consistently without major fitness issues.
Varane played the full 90 minutes for France in their Nations League match on Thursday
As a result, Maguire is under pressure to perform for England in the international break
Ten Hag praised not only Varane’s technical capabilities, but also his leadership qualities. Ten Hag told MUTV: ‘The reason (for another clean sheet) is that we had good possession and that we defended very well.
“With Rapha Varane there as the leader, he puts everyone in the right place, he fits very well with Licha Martinez and the two wing backs have also done their job very well.”
Such comments could be seen as threatening to Maguire, who was told he would not be selected for Man United’s roster solely because of his status as captain of the club.
Ten Hag also called Varane a “legend” and praised his performance for United so far this season. The Dutch manager said: ‘Everyone knows how good he is. He is a legend to me. I’m very happy to play with him in the back, but every player in the team is ready to play. Every player is doing well and working hard.’
Varane is also an experienced winner. He became world champion four times with his former club Real Madrid. He also won on the international stage with France. That’s why United fans are excited about the impact he could have on their Premier League side.
England have only one game left to prepare before heading to the World Cup in Qatar
Varane’s recent appearance for France in their 2-0 win over Austria proved exactly why United fans should be excited by what’s coming from the defender and why Maguire should be concerned.
The 29-year-old captained France to their UEFA Nations League victory, successfully completing all 90 minutes of the game – in which Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud found the back of the net.
Varane also shutout striker Arnautovic – who was the only Austrian player to pose a real threat to France’s backline – and completed 100 per cent of his long balls.
The French captain also made four clearances, touched the ball 72 times, recorded a 92 percent pass completion stat and won all three of his dogfights against Austria.
That’s why the pressure is on Maguire – who did little to win over critics during England’s 1-0 defeat in Italy on Friday night.