Harry Maguire has garnered attention after a training clip of him waltzing past his England team-mates in training did the rounds.
The centre-half is part of the Three Lions World Cup squad, but arrived in Qatar with question marks over his starting role. Maguire has been a stalwart during the Gareth Southgate 's reign, but has seen his form drop off ever since the Euros last summer. The Manchester United man comes in with a lack of minutes and looks a player bereft of confidence.
That didn't seem to be the case in training however as England prepare for their opening game against Iran. Maguire, who had forged a reputation as a very competent defender with the ball at his feet, could be seen gliding past his team-mates in a small-sided game.
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He initially performed a 'Maradona' to get past one player before some quick feet saw him evade Conor Coady, allowing the United man to get a shot off. Maguire turned and ran back after his venture with a huge smile on his face.
The centre-half certainly faces a nervous wait to see if he will be named as a starter against Iran. Southgate, however, has often deployed three central defenders, which bolsters his chances. That said, Ben White, Conor Coady, John Stones and Eric Dier are all alternative options for the England boss.
Maguire, who has been usurped at club level and is now resigned to the Old Trafford bench, struggled in the latest round of internationals. Southgate kept faith with the 29-year-old in the friendly against Germany, but he made two crucial errors which saw him come in for heavy criticism, in the 3-3 draw.
The Three Lions boss has been loyal to those who've performed for their country, as Maguire has, but he is under huge pressure to switch things up. Southgate has claimed that the United man is "one of our best defenders" when explaining his inclusion.
He also added: "We've picked our more experienced defenders, and we think at this moment in time, the younger ones have got some really good qualities but we don't think they've quite done enough to push the more experienced ones out. We think the tournament that we're going in to and the level of the matches, that needed to be the pecking order."
Maguire enjoyed a breakout tournament for England in the last World Cup in Russia, where the Three Lions surpassed expectations by reaching the semi-final. He scored in the last eight win over Sweden and has been a crucial part of the international set-up ever since, scoring in the penalty shootout defeat to Italy last summer.
