Due to circumstances out of the hands of Manchester United, their progress in the Premier League has been halted.
In the absence of domestic football since the 3-1 victory over Arsenal, the Reds have suffered mixed fortunes. Defeat to Real Sociedad was overshadowed by world events before a week later a strong United team strolled to a 2-0 victory over Sheriff Tiraspol in Moldova.
The postponement of the Leeds United clash means that Erik ten Hag now has two weeks to decide on his team to face Manchester City at the Etihad. As things stand, Ten Hag has a good idea of what his strongest XI is.
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However, there are four players who are heading out on international duty who the Dutchman will be keeping a close eye on to see if they have what it takes to break into the starting line-up for the derby.
Harry Maguire
Gareth Southgate's appreciation for Maguire is no secret. The England manager has entrusted the United captain in his defence since the 2018 World Cup.
However, plenty of eyebrows were raised when Maguire was called up for international duty this week. The 29-year-old has hardly had a sniff for Ten Hag since the hammering at Brentford with Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez dominating the heart of the defence.
It is a huge international break now for Maguire to prove why he should be given a chance in the starting XI. He will need to put in a wonder performance to dislodge United's current duo.
Luke Shaw
Similarly to Maguire, Shaw has struggled to get back into the United line-up following the opening two horror shows. The left-back has had difficulties with injuries but Tyrell Malacia has been a revelation in his place.
We have become accustomed to Shaw pulling out some sensational performances for England and another may turn the head of Ten Hag. It would take a lot for Shaw to replace Malacia.
Casemiro
Casemiro has had a surprising lack of game time since he joined from Real Madrid in the summer. This has partly been down to Scott McTominay's form but also due to his lack of minutes before moving to Old Trafford.
The 30-year-old is starting to get up to speed for the Reds and Ten Hag is waiting patiently to unleash his new signing on a regular basis. A good showing for Brazil this week will certainly catch the eye and have McTominay glancing over his shoulder.
Cristiano Ronaldo
The man with perhaps the least to prove out of this quartet is Ronaldo. United's Portuguese ace will have settled plenty of his own nerves and Ten Hag's with his goal on Thursday.
However, it still feels as though Ronaldo is merely keeping the centre-forward position warm for whenever Anthony Martial or Marcus Rashford returns to fitness. The 37-year-old will be looking to show his ruthlessness with Portugal in order to keep his place once the aforementioned pair return.
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