Owen Hargreaves claims there are only a handful of players in the Manchester United squad who can be confident of starting week in, week out in the Premier League.
Erik ten Hag is stilling getting to grips with life in England after arriving from Ajax earlier this year, so his team selections have varied throughout the early stages of the season. David de Gea has been a mainstay between the posts, while Lisandro Martinez has been indispensable in defence since his £55million summer transfer.
Diogo Dalot has established himself as Ten Hag's first-choice right-back and, further up the pitch, Christian Eriksen has been impressing in midfield just behind Bruno Fernandes. Hargreaves views this quintet as the only players who can be assured of starting the biggest games for United, claiming "the other positions seem up for grabs".
"Luke Shaw came into the side against Everton," Hargreaves told BT Sport ahead of Thursday night's Europa League fixture against Omonia Nicosia. "[Victor] Lindelof, Casemiro... so he's [Ten Hag is] still trying to find the blend.
"So you can argue the only people guaranteed to start [are] Martinez, De Gea, Dalot, Bruno, maybe Eriksen. So the other positions seem up for grabs, so it's auditions for these players to play well. They've got a big squad but he's [Ten Hag is] still getting to know it."
Ten Hag has had a mixed but promising start to life with the Red Devils, winning five of his first eight Premier League games. This leaves United fifth in the table as they aim to secure Champions League qualification, having been condemned to playing in the Europa League this season.
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"Considering where they [United] were, he's doing a good job and if they can be top four, they've had a heck of a season," Hargreaves added, while his comments were echoed by Old Trafford legend Paul Scholes.
"I think it's still early days, I think he's still trying to find the right blend in his team," Scholes said of Ten Hag. "I think he'd almost like to rest a few of his players on the Sundays but because he's not totally thrilled with the performances. I don't think he's got the right blend, so I think he's almost using these [Europa League] games as practice.
"It's very difficult to predict what team he's going to play and finding that right blend has been difficult, there's been injuries as well. It's been difficult but I think the signs are looking positive and the longer it goes on, the more confidence he will get in his team."
After their clash with Omonia, the Red Devils are back in action at Old Trafford on Sunday, when they host Newcastle.
