After losing their places in the Manchester United side at the start of the season, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw - albeit slightly less so - were under pressure to get back into Erik ten Hag's team as the World Cup in Qatar quickly approached.
While both players were unlikely to miss out on a place in Gareth Southgate's squad for the mid-season tournament, there were calls for Maguire, in particular, to be left out given that he was not featuring regularly for the Reds. For Shaw, meanwhile, he was able to win his place back after losing it to summer addition Tyrell Malacia and quickly reasserted himself as the club's first-choice left-back.
Maguire had made just nine appearances in all competitions for United when he was included in the Three Lions squad for the World Cup, while Shaw had featured on 15 occasions. Given that the England manager has consistently backed the Reds captain, his inclusion didn't come as a surprise, but he, and Shaw, still had to prove that they warranted a place on the plane.
