Erik ten Hag agrees with Manchester United legend on captaincy change stance

Erik ten Hag has answered captaincy questions at Manchester United as Harry Maguire is set to be replaced as the man with the armband.

United won their first pre-season fixture against Leeds United on Wednesday. Noam Emeran and Joe Hugill scored in a 2-0 victory at the Ullevaal Stadion in Norway.

Without club captain Harry Maguire or Bruno Fernandes, who occupied the armband in the England defender’s absence last term, it was Raphaël Varane who led United out of the tunnel in Oslo.

“It was truly an honour for me to be captain,” the Frenchman told MUTV after the game.

It was then youngster Charlie Savage who earned the honour of wearing the armband in the second half as Ten Hag introduced a youthful team following the interval.

With Maguire, and the rest of United’s internationals, set to return to training on Saturday, it seems likely that a captaincy change will be made in due course. Maguire started just eight Premier League fixtures last term.

It was former Red Louis Saha who recently stated that it would’ve been ‘harsh’ of Ten Hag to strip Maguire of the role midway through last season but stressed that a change should be made.

Saha added that the player should have the confidence of Ten Hag, alongside other aspects, and it seems that the Dutch boss has a similar idea in mind.

Some clubs operate their captaincy in a system where the players in the squad pick a captain amongst them. This was how former interim manager Ralf Rangnick worked, previously stating that he “strongly believes that the captain should be elected by the team”.

However, Ten Hag has explained that he will be the one making the decision on who will be the captain of the club next season, and he will likely be taking into account the attributes detailed by Saha.

“No, I don’t let the dressing room vote (on the captaincy). It is up to me,” he told reporters following the 2-0 win against Leeds.

This statement also strongly suggests that Ten Hag is in fact looking to replace Maguire in the role. Bruno Fernandes is the primary option to take over the responsibility. He was Ten Hag’s chosen captain for the most-part of last season.