Big changes are brewing at Manchester United.
After what has turned out to be a disastrous campaign in every way imaginable, United are now limping along the home straight as the conclusion of the 2021-22 season nears. Saturday's 3-1 defeat to Arsenal has left United's Champions League hopes hanging by a thread so thin that you need a magnifying glass to see it.
But, whatever happens in United's four remaining fixtures this season, the size of the challenge awaiting new manager Erik ten Hag this summer cannot be underestimated. The Dutchman, in what will be the biggest job of his career so far, will be tasked with overseeing one of the biggest summers United have faced in recent memory.
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Whilst mass changes need to be made to the first-team squad, in terms of players both coming in and going out, as well as a clear vision and philosophy needing to be installed, another challenge that Ten Hag is likely to face is deciding who he wants to sport the captain's armband from next season onwards. Harry Maguire has faced a wealth of criticism throughout this term and his future with the armband is under threat.
Despite being an £80m signing, the former Leicester City man has failed to display the leadership qualities that a United player needs to showcase. In his defence, however, it is hard to do that when almost everything that United have touched this season has gone pear-shaped.
Nevertheless, Maguire has failed with the armband, meaning speculation is already mounting about who could sport it next season. Will Ten Hag allow Maguire to keep it in the hope that he can rebuild his career, or hand it to somebody else? Only time will tell.
But whilst the decision will rest with Ten Hag, current interim manager Ralf Rangnick has outlined what he would do if he was going to be in charge next season. Referencing his experience from life in Germany, he has admitted that discussions would be held with the players to gauge their views on who they think would be the ideal leader of the squad.
Speaking in his press conference on Wednesday, Rangnick said: "I can only tell you what I have done in the past when I was head coach or manager, because in Germany it's called 'Mannschaftskapitan' - the captain of the team. I strongly believe the captain should be elected by the team because he's called the team manager and we always did that.
"We always had a board of four or five players - we called it the Spielerrat [players' council] - elected by the players. The player with the highest amount of votes was the team captain at the end. That was how I did it.
"I know a lot of head coaches don't do it that way. That's what I would do if I was still the manager next season but in the end, I'm not. This is something that Erik will have to decide."
If the current Ajax boss does make the decision to take Rangnick's advice on board, decide to remove the captain's armband from Maguire's sleeve and ask his players who they think would be the ideal successor, based on this season's woes, it would hard to pick a candidate. United have lacked leaders and strong personalities this season, perhaps with the exception of David de Gea.
The goalkeeper has often been the first to emerge on social media to engage with the fans after a disappointing result, as well as not being afraid to mince his words in TV interviews. He certainly wasn't afraid to air his views after the defeat to Everton earlier this month, delivering a brutally honest assessment of the 1-0 defeat at Goodison Park.
He told BT Sport: "I don't know what to say, to be honest. We knew before today they were struggling and how difficult it was going to be.
"It's not the perfect atmosphere. You see today they [Everton] were tired, nervous, they keep fighting, they had more desire.
"It's not acceptable. They played Wednesday and they were tired but they had more desire than us, that is not acceptable.
"Very sad to lose. It is a disgrace from us. We should be winning this game."
Those were the comments of a leader. De Gea has been United's best player this season by a country mile and his honesty cannot be criticised in any way. It has been refreshing and truthful.
However, whilst he seems like the most suited candidate to replace Maguire as United skipper, Ten Hag's style of play could impact his chances, with some United fans already believing that Dean Henderson could get the nod between the sticks next season, purely because of Ajax's interest in him a few months ago and Ten Hag's vision. It is a difficult one for Ten Hag to weigh up, but it is a decision he cannot afford to get wrong.
In the grand scheme of things, deciding on who sports the armband might seem irrelevant when considering what changes need to happen at Old Trafford this summer, but it is a decision that could go an awfully long way in instilling a winning mentality. Ten Hag cannot get it wrong.
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