Former United striker Louis Saha has claimed that Harry Maguire made a mistake by not leaving Old Trafford this January transfer window.

Saha said the England international would have benefitted from the exit as he is no longer favoured for selection at Old Trafford.

It is understood that West Ham and Aston Villa were linked with a loan move for Maguire, while Inter Milan also made enquiries after their move for Victor Lindelof was also rejected but he was not interested.

Former United forward Saha believes a short-term switch away from Manchester may well have also helped his cause.

‘It’s a difficult one, especially after he had a good World Cup,’ Saha told The Games Cabin.

‘It’s right that he’s not in the starting line-up because Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez have shown a good understanding with one another. You have to expect this competition at big clubs and Harry just needs to be patient. 

‘A loan move may have been a good option for him to show that he’s worth another try because he’s still a key player and he’s Manchester United’s captain.

‘Even if Erik ten Hag isn’t playing him often, I expect that Ten Hag still respects the player and wants to see him improve. It’s still possible for him to contribute.’

Bruno Fernandes has warned new signing of Marcel Sabitzer that must be ready to push himself to ‘the highest level.’

United brought in Sabitzer on the transfer deadline day as they are set to be without Christian Eriksen until late April or early May after he suffered an injury from a nasty challenge from Andy Carroll in Saturday’s FA Cup victory over Reading.

‘He’s a good player, a really good midfielder,’ Fernandes said of United’s latest arrival.

‘He can shoot from outside of the box, he can score great goals. He’ll give us more options in the midfield while Christian is injured.

‘He’s another one who’ll make it difficult for everyone in the team to have a place.’

Fernandes added that Sabitzer has arrived at the club ‘fully fit’ and will be ready to come into the side straight away.

‘Even for him, he knows he has to push himself to the highest level to be playing for us now and everyone that is starting – for example me, Casemiro and Fred – we know it costs a lot to have a place in the team and we have another one fighting for that position so we have to give our best.

‘We’re really happy to have him, we think he can help us. Tomorrow I’ll be with him, I’ll talk a little bit with him and see.

‘I think he’s fully fit, he’s been playing, so hopefully he’ll help us a lot.’

Paul Parker has warned Amad Diallo that a return to parent club Manchester United could hurt his development.

The 20-year-old versatile attacker is currently on a season-long loan at Championship side Sunderland, and has registered seven goals in 20 games for the team as they are currently two points off the play-offs as they look to make a return to the Premier League.

Former United, Parker feels the Ivory Coast international should stay at Sunderland and continue his development for as long as possible after struggling at Scottish club Rangers in a previous loan spell.

‘He is a very smart player,’ Parker told SpilXperten about Diallo. ‘I have seen all his goals and assists, and he moves cleverly on the pitch.

‘He had an extremely difficult time at Rangers because it’s a completely different way of playing football in Scotland.

‘It was a really bad idea for him to ever go to Rangers just because his agent wanted him to play for a big club.

‘But I still think the stay has benefited him mentally and that’s maybe why he’s playing so well for Sunderland.

‘Every time he descends into a black hole in the future, he just has to think about how awful it was at Rangers. It was a good lesson.

‘However, it makes no sense for him to come back to Manchester United just yet. There are so many wingers at the club that it’s like being in a doctor’s waiting room.

‘The next one is constantly ready in the queue, so he should stay at Sunderland for an extra year.’

Roy Keane says there is a ‘huge question mark’ over Manchester United striker Wout Weghorst.

Keane suggests that his January arrival is ‘gamble’ after watching him play against Arsenal on Sunday evening.

United signed the Netherlands international on a loan deal until the end of the season following his heroics against Argentina at the World Cup in Qatar.

He was on loan at Besiktas this term from parent club Burnley – registering eight goals and four assists across 16 Turkish league games but he seems to be unconvinced in his performance for Arsenal.

Keane is unsure about United’s decision to bring in Weghorst, though, as he shared his thoughts prior to Sunday’s clash against Arsenal.

‘It’s a bit of a gamble but it’s a loan deal, I can see why the manager (Erik ten Hag) has done it,’ Keane told Sky Sports.

‘He’s going to be a good team player but whether he’ll get the goals is a huge question mark.’

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has pointed to Harry Maguire as the player who is secretly pushing for a move away from Old Trafford.

The club legend said he would be ‘gobsmacked’ if Harry Maguire wasn’t looking for a new club.

Maguire has lost his place in Erik ten Hag’s team as Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane have formed a formidable partnership at the heart of United’s defence this season.

It is expected that he would be unhappy, especially after an impressive display at the World Cup.

Ferdinand believes the former Leicester City star will be quietly looking to find a new club immediately.

He told iNews: ‘If I came back from a tournament and done well, hit a bit of form and confidence again, come back to my club where I’m captain, and the manager has said to me ‘Patrice Evra is playing centre-half – our only other first-choice centre-half isn’t fit but now we’re playing Patrice there,’ and I’m sitting here fit, I’d have to be asking questions and saying “this ain’t happening, you obviously don’t fancy me, I need to look for a new club, thank you”.

‘That isn’t me saying Harry is this or that. That’s just looking at the situation cold and saying that’s the way it has to play out.

‘If Harry Maguire and his agent aren’t looking for a new club I’d be absolutely gobsmacked. I don’t see Harry Maguire at this stage of his career saying “I’m happy to be a squad player”.

‘I can’t see Harry Maguire who starts for England and is Man United captain saying he’s happy to be sitting on the bench. I wouldn’t be able to understand that.’

Former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson has told Manchester United that should have re-signed a transfer flop Memphis Depay instead of agreeing a deal for Burnley striker Wout Weghorst.

The Red Devils have agreed to sign Weghorst, 30, on loan for the rest of the season while Depay is also on the verge of an exit from Barcelona.

Robinson doubts if Weghorst is good enough to play for the Red Devils and says the deal ‘stinks’ of a ‘stop-gap’ signing.

‘It stinks of a club that is in limbo,’ Robinson said of Manchester United’s move for Weghorst in an interview with Football Insider.

‘Look, Weghorst fits the bill. He will do a job. He is a number nine, a target man and a handful. But where are United shopping?

‘They need to sign a top striker. Weghorst seems to be a stop-gap. This is a player who Burnley have allowed to leave. He is a very good player but is he a Man United player, no. He is a striker and they need a striker but he’s not world-class.’

Robinson added: ‘Manchester United should be going for Memphis Depay. Depay is a miles better player than Weghorst.

‘There should not be a choice. Depay would be a brilliant signing for Man United. I’m sure the fans would rather have Depay back because it is a different Depay to the one that left.’

Rio Ferdinand has urged Harry Maguire to leave Manchester United after claiming that the defender has been disrespected by Erik ten Hag.

His is as Luke Shaw was played instead of him in central defence last month, in addition to dropping the former Leicester City defender on tbe bench before the World Cup.

Recall that a number of pundits had also asked Cristiano Ronaldo to leave the club while still at Old Trafford over being disrespected by same manager.

However, Ferdinand insists Maguire will be unhappy with how he has been treated by ten Hag at Old Trafford.

‘If you’re him you have to leave now,’ Ferdinand said of Maguire on Vibe With Five.

‘Luke Shaw’s playing centre-back instead of him.

‘That’s like me going back after the World Cup, playing well, everyone saying he’s done really well, and Patrice Evra is playing centre-back.

‘I’d want to strangle Patrice! I would’ve smashed Patrice in training to make sure he’s not available, and I’d be going to the manager and saying, ‘are you taking the piss out of me, boss?’. I’d have walked straight into the manager’s office and said, ‘you’re disrespecting me’.

‘Harry Maguire’s got to move. I think he stays because of the games and they can’t get someone else in. He plays in the cup games.’

Rio Ferdinand has asked Manchester United to consider other options for the attack as he claimed that Porto striker Mehdi Taremi would be a better option than their target, Wout Weghorst

It is understood that Erik ten Hag is on the verge of signing Weghorst after making it clear, his desire to bring in another striker this January transfer window.

But Ferdinand feels United should make a move for Taremi, who has scored 14 goals in 20 appearances for Porto this season and impressed for Iran at the World Cup as he scored twice in the 6-2 defeat to England.

‘If you go outside the Premier League it’s a risk, I don’t care what level, unless you’re talking to [Kylian] Mbappe. Outside that everything’s a risk.

‘It’s massive money, 100 million, 120 million, [Victor] Osimhen, you’re getting charged. You’re paying big dough for these guys.

‘You’re going to have to pay big money for Harry Kane but at least you know you’re getting a man who’s getting you 20, 25 goals a season. We can ask, ‘does he suit the play?’, the man scores 20, 25 goals. Harry Kane can’t be going anywhere but Man United.’

The decision however will be left for manager Erik ten Hag to make at the end of the day.