With the Premier League season drawing to a close, speculation over Harry Maguire's future at Manchester United is set to intensify.
The United captain, 30, has endured a difficult couple of years on the pitch, where his form has pretty much deserted him. And although he was initially given the benefit of the doubt at the start of the campaign, it didn't take long for Maguire to fall out of favour under new boss Erik ten Hag.
With Maguire spending the majority of the season on the bench, Bruno Fernandes has donned the captain's armband - and judging by Ten Hag's most recent comments, the Dutchman is more than happy for the midfielder to continue deputising when Maguire is out of the side.
“I emphasised it on Thursday, he’s so tough,” Ten Hag said of the Portuguese playmaker after he scored the winner in Sunday's 1-0 triumph over Aston Villa. “A few weeks ago there were questions about his captaincy - it’s crazy, he’s such a big leader, he gives so much energy to the team.
“His determination, his passion, his resilience. You need such players if you want to win games and win trophies.”
Going by Ten Hag's previous comments, there are no plans to strip Maguire of the club captaincy if he opts to stay and fight for his spot in the team. But it is beginning to feel more and more like the £80million man is stranded in no man's land.
With United seemingly no worse off without his leadership skills on the pitch, he faces an uphill battle to muscle his way back into the fold on merit alone.
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In his preferred left-sided centre-back role, summer signing Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw, a left-back by trade, are now ahead of him in the pecking order. The much maligned Victor Lindelof has also earned plenty of praise over the past fortnight and can effectively now be considered as third-choice in that spot, bumping Maguire down even further.
On the other side of defence, where Maguire has been utilised most often by Ten Hag, Raphael Varane and Lindelof have both been in better form than the beleaguered England ace.
Maguire has spoken of his desire to force his way into the club's plans in recent months, however, fresh reports last week claimed that the defender may be forced to soften his stance amid fears that he could lose his spot in the England squad ahead of next summer's European Championships if he continues to be starved of regular first-team action.
He still has two years left to run on his current contract at Old Trafford, meaning the Red Devils would be in a position to demand a reasonable transfer fee for his services - if Maguire decides that he does, in fact, have to move on in order to kickstart his career.
