Erik ten Hag forced into Harry Maguire U-turn as Man Utd injury curse continues
The enforced loss of Lisandro Martinez for at least eight weeks is the latest blow in an injury-cursed season for Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag.
There is no doubt United's progress in their second season under Ten Hag has been compromised by a consistent loss of key personnel to injuries, particularly at the back. Ten Hag has been without Martinez, Luke Shaw, Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Tyrell Malacia for sustained spells, the United boss unable to pick a consistent side, but unwilling to use it as an excuse for his side's failings this season.
Martinez's latest injury, a medial collateral ligament strain in his right knee, was sustained in United's 3-0 win over West Ham on Sunday, with the hope he can be back in action for the season run-in.
Martinez and Varane had emerged as Ten Hag's first-choice central defensive pairing, but the former's second serious injury of the campaign is likely to see Maguire get the nod to partner Varane.
Varane and Maguire are facing uncertain futures, with both potentially on their way in the summer, but the way in which the latter has revived his United career suggests he may well stay put. Ten Hag's decision to take the captaincy off Maguire in the summer and hand the role to Bruno Fernandes marked a new low in the England star's turbulent United career.
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Jettisoned for much of last season, Maguire looked set to leave United last summer, but turned down the chance of a move to West Ham and elected to stay and fight for his place. That decision was vindicated when Martinez was sidelined for a long spell after United's 4-3 defeat at Bayern Munich in September, although Ten Hag opted for Varane, Lindelof and Evans in the immediate aftermath.
Yet Maguire soon proved himself to be the most reliable centre-back – form and fitness-wise – in the absence of the injured Martinez and started 14 games in a row for United in all competitions.
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Lisandro Martinez's injury has left Erik ten Hag facing a crisis in defence (Getty Images)From looking like he had chosen a season on the bench, one with England's Euro 2024 campaign at the end of it, Maguire had managed to reinvent himself and remind United of his enduring value.
Injury would ultimately afflict Maguire in mid December, keeping him out for eight games, but his renaissance this season suggests he is likely to be retained by Ten Hag and United in the summer. The same cannot be said of Varane with the same sense of conviction, with the France World Cup winner the most likely of United's central defenders to be on the move this summer.
Despite his stature and experience, Varane's form has been patchy this season and he has been a hostage to a succession of minor injuries and ailments which have interrupted his campaign.
United are looking to recruit a centre-back this summer to partner Martinez next season, which indicates at least one of Varane, Maguire and Lindelof will go, with Jonny Evans also set to leave when his one-year deal expires at the end of the campaign.
With a year left on his current deal, United could recoup a decent fee for Varane, whom they signed from Real Madrid for £41million in the summer of 2021, while keeping Maguire and possibly Lindelof.
The next few weeks are likely to have a big say on which defenders stay at United and which are moved on this summer, with Maguire, Varane, Lindelof and Evans all with a point to prove in the enforced absence of Martinez.
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