Of all the transformations that Erik ten Hag has made at Manchester United, very few expected one of those to come in the shape of his full-backs.
Last summer, there was a legitimate case to be made that a new right-back was required in a team that was overly reliant on Diogo Dalot, and that case persisted all the way up to the World Cup break.
The Portuguese full-back started every game bar one in the first chunk of the season, only missing out on a start at Fulham because he was suspended. In his place, left-back signing Tyrell Malacia was repurposed, highlighting just how little depth there was in that position.
