England manager Gareth Southgate can sometimes bristle when he’s asked questions about the national team’s Manchester United contingent, knowing that anything he says is likely to become the headline. But the 52-year-old has reason to keep an eye on Old Trafford for the next two months as he whittles down his list of players ahead of the 2022 World Cup this November.
Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw were all part of the England squad which made it to the final of Euro 2020, but with time running out to earn a seat on the plane to Qatar, they each have reason to worry about their spot.
Rashford and Sancho are trying to play their way back in after paying the price for a poor year at club level, while Maguire and Shaw are no longer sure of their places at United. But Southgate has until Nov. 13 to send his final squad of 26 to FIFA ahead of the World Cup, which means all four of United’s England hopefuls are already on the clock.
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Marcus Rashford
Rashford lost his place in Southgate’s squad last season — a campaign during which he managed just five goals in 32 games. He was not alone in finding it tough at United, as first manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and then Ralf Rangnick struggled to get a tune out of a team that were initially tipped to challenge for the title. After scoring in back-to-back games in January, Rashford didn’t find the net again for the rest of the season and when Rangnick was picking his team for a crucial Champions League round of 16 second leg against Atletico Madrid in March, the 24-year-old forward found himself on the bench behind teenager Anthony Elanga.
The good news for Rashford is that he’s found a fan in new United boss Erik ten Hag. Back in the team this season, he’s scored three goals so far — in high-profile fixtures against Liverpool and Arsenal. There has been a suggestion he’s already done enough to earn an England recall for the Nations League games against Italy and Germany during the international break at the end of September, but he will have to take his chance to persuade Southgate to include him in the squad for Qatar.
Harry Maguire
Maguire’s situation is different from Rashford in that he kept his place with England despite struggling for form at United. But while Rashford is playing regularly under Ten Hag, Maguire has lost his place in defence after the €57.37 million arrival of Lisandro Martinez from Ajax in the summer. He was in the starting XI for the defeats against Brighton and Brentford ahead of Raphael Varane, but hasn’t started a Premier League game since Aug. 13.
When Southgate was discussing Rashford and Maguire last season, he admitted that they couldn’t be put in the same bracket because England have far more options in attacking positions than they do at the back. Maguire also has credit in the bank, according to Southgate, because he’s continued to show up for England whenever he’s been picked, something he says Rashford has not always done. “In the last eight squads, he [Rashford] has ended up pulling out of six,” Southgate said in March after naming a squad which included Maguire but not Rashford. “Maguire has been in the team and a key part of the team for massive matches over a long period of time.”
The issue for Southgate now is whether he’s happy to take Maguire to the World Cup even if he doesn’t win back his place at United. Southgate has usually picked squads based on form but, in the past, Maguire has been given some leeway because of past performances at international level.
