Raphael Varane is ruining Gareth Southgate's World Cup plans
Raphael Varane is ruining Gareth Southgate’s World Cup plans with his Manchester United rejuvenation and ‘imperial’ displays for France… it’s put pressure on team-mate Harry Maguire to perform for England after falling out of favour at Old Trafford
- Harry Maguire has fallen down the pecking order at Manchester United this term
- Raphael Varane’s been thriving for United this season after prior injury concerns
- Varane captained France to their 2-0 win over Austria and played all 90 minutes
England’s World Cup campaign in Qatar kicks of in under two months and pressure is mounting on Gareth Southgate. The Three Lions manager successfully guided England to a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and a European Championship final in 2021 but that isn’t enough to satisfy the fans.
Therefore, selection heading into this year’s tournament is more important than ever and Manchester United defender Raphael Varane is ruining Southgate’s plans. The French international has rejuvenated his career at Old Trafford and is pushing Harry Maguire further out of the picture.
As a result, Maguire’s place in the England squad has come into question. Fans have been calling for the Manchester United captain to be dropped from Southgate’s side, while the England manager has said he is sticking by the central defender.
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 evening.
Varane guided the French team to a 2-0 victory in their UEFA Nations League fixture and played the full 90 minutes to squash any fitness concerns. He also shut out striker Marko Arnautovic.
Raphael Varane is ruining Gareth Southgate’s plans for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar
Southgate has just under two months to decide who will be boarding the plane to Qatar
The French media heaped praise on 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 senior players.
‘It shows how important he is after a tough year. He was at Real Madrid for a long time and then there was this transfer to Manchester United and small problems. But we saw that even the greats sometimes need time to adapt. He is now getting back to his best.’
Meanwhile, Maguire has played just 11 minutes of Premier League football since being dropped by Erik ten Hag following United’s disastrous 4-0 defeat by Brentford on August 13. To make matters even worse, those 11 minutes of football were only granted to him as a result of Lisandro Martinez’s injury against Arsenal.
The Three Lions manager successfully guided England to a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and a European Championship final in 2021 but that isn’t enough to satisfy the fans
Therefore, pressure is on Southgate to select the right squad for the upcoming tournament
Gareth Southgate – who said he would never pick an England squad ‘on reputation’ after taking the job in 2016 – has said Maguire’s situation at United if far from ideal. However, he has chosen to back the defender despite his difficulties at club level.
The Three Lions boss said: ‘Clearly, it’s not an ideal situation [with Maguire]. We’re only a few weeks on from pre-season so, physically, if they’ve had a few 90 minutes, that’s fine. Another seven to eight weeks, that does start to become more complicated.
‘But he is an important player for us and it’s important to back our best players. Whatever reputation I have, I’m putting it on there. He is our most dominant aerial centre-back.’
Harry Maguire’s place in the team is under threat after falling down the pecking order at United
Varane has rediscoverd some of his best for at Manchester United after struggling last season
According to Southgate, Maguire has played a pivotal role in England’s success over the years – claiming Maguire was instrumental in reaching the World Cup semi-final in 2018 and the European Championship final in 2021.
Southgate said: ‘Maguire and John [Stones] are incredible with the ball – the amount of pressure they have taken for the team in tournaments because we don’t always have that midfield pivot player who can progress the game. It means there is a huge amount more pressure on our centre-backs to use the ball well and those two are as good as any in world football at doing that.’
However, Maguire’s form for Manchester United 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-hand-side of the pitch. As a result, the ball went out for a throw in – setting up the attack that Brentford scored from.
Varane picked up an injury while away on international duty last year after signing for United
Varane’s fitness was regarded as an issue last season after he sat out 17 games due to injury
Maguire was also responsible for Brighton’s second goal during their Premier League fixture on August 7. He vacated his role as the right centre-back and flocked over to the left-hand-side of the pitch.
He was trying to tackle the player stood directly in front of Martinez but failed to do so and ultimately ruled himself and his United team-mate out of the contest. As a result, Brighton broke through and scored.
Not only has he struggled to assert is dominance on the pitch, he has also struggled to assert it on the pitch. He failed to demonstrate the leadership skills he was once praised for. He couldn’t bring together United’s disconnected group of players last season and instead added to the issue by calling out the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Therefore, Maguire’s ‘must play status’ at United has disappeared. He has well and truly dropped down the pecking order under Ten Hag – who is favouring Martinez and Varane as his defensive pairing.
Varane’s fitness was regarded as an issue last season after he sat out 17 games due to injury. However, the Dutch manager confirmed Varane had been taking part in specialised training sessions ahead of the 2022-2023 campaign to increase his robustness.
Since then, the French international has represented Manchester United consistently without any major fitness issues.
Varane played the full 90 minutes for France in their Nations League fixture on Thursday
As a result, Maguire is under pressure to perform for England during the international break
Ten Hag has not only praised Varane’s technical abilities, but also his leadership qualities. Ten Hag told MUTV: ‘The reason (for another clean sheet) is we were good in possession and we defended very well.
‘With Rapha Varane there as the leader, he puts everyone in the right position, he fits really good together with Licha Martinez and also the two full-backs did their job really good.’
Such comments can be viewed as threatening to Maguire – who was told he would not be selected for the Man United squad just because of his status as the club’s captain.
Ten Hag has also referred to Varane as a ‘legend’ – praising his performances for United so far this season. The Dutch manager said: ‘Everyone knows how good he is. He is a legend for me. I’m really happy to play with him at 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 has been a world champion four times with his former club, Real Madrid. He has also won on the international stage with France. Therefore, United fans are excited about the impact he could have on their Premier League side.
England have just one more match to prepare before heading to the World Cup in Qatar
Varane’s recent performance for France in their 2-0 win over Austria proved exactly why the United fans should be excited by what’s to come from the defender and why Maguire should be worried.
The 29-year-old captained France to their UEFA Nations League win and successfully completed all 90 minutes of the game – which saw Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud find the back of the net.
Varane also shutout striker Arnautovic – who was the only Austrian player that posed a real threat to France’s back line – and completed 100 per cent of his long balls.
The French captain also made four clearances, touched the ball 72 times, registered a 92 per cent pass completion stat and won all three of his aerial battles against Austria.
Therefore, the pressure is on Maguire – who did little to win over critics during England’s 1-0 defeat in Italy on Friday night.
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