Harry Maguire has been given a chance in Raphael Varane’s absence but former Man United star Paul Parker has harsh words for both Varane and Lisandro Martinez.
Man United have been struggling with a lot of injuries at the back this season, where both Martinez and Raphael Varane have been absent through injuries. These absences have given the opportunities to Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans, and we sat down to have a chat with Paul Parker, who is clearly not impressed with Maguire.
With Varane out again with an injury, Parker claims that Erik ten Hag can’t rely on the Frenchman but he is not completely ready to get rid of Varane yet.
Maguire Can’t Rejuvenate His Career At Man United – It’s Time To Go
Maguire had been looking like a dead man walking in the Manchester United squad for quite some time. Erik ten Hag had Maguire as one of his last resorts when it came to his central defensive options. Yet through injuries Maguire has been given an opportunity to stake his claim. But Parker makes it crystal clear that he is not good enough to play for Man United.
“Harry Maguire did okay against Brentford but so did Jonny Evans. He had a better game than Maguire even though people are praising him for winning that header in the end. But that’s his job.
“Has his ego improved Man United in the backline? Certainly not and the manager knows that. Erik ten Hag was forced into a situation where he had to use Maguire but it was not of his own free will.
“Maguire shouldn’t be at Manchester United. He is 100% not good enough to play for this club. As much as people are hoping that he can rejuvenate his Man United career, I see no chance of that happening.”
Parker adds that the club wants to sell Maguire in January, however it’s up to the Englishman whether he wants to leave or not.
“I think every game with Harry Maguire is a jeopardy game and it’s a test. Even the game against Sheffield United will be a test because they will believe that they can get something out of the game when they see Maguire’s name in the starting lineup.
“We know that the club wants to sell him and they will do everything in their power to do so in January.“
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Erik ten Hag Can’t Rely On Varane
According to Parker, the French centre half is unreliable because of his many injuries and adds that nothing about him shows power on the pitch.
“You definitely can’t rely on Raphael Varane and especially him not being injured. That’s impossible. He doesn’t look like he has the strongest legs in the world and nothing about him shows power.
“He was the first player to moan about the amount of extra minutes, but so far he hasn’t been affected by the extra minutes, so that can’t be an excuse.”
Parker continues by saying that Varane was carried by Sergio Ramos for a lot of years during his very successful time at Real Madrid.
If he somehow gets rid of the injuries, Parker thinks that Lisandro Martinez would need to carry Varane like Ramos did.
“He was carried for a lot of years by Sergio Ramos at Real Madrid. We can see that he is a player that can defend well but he needs to be told what to do by the man next to him.
“Lisandro Martinez can be that guy but he is also injured now. Martinez can get the best out of Varane because of his personality but I don’t believe that the club can ever expect him to play a lot of games.”
