With Bruno Fernandes suspended for Manchester United’s daunting Premier League trip to archrivals Liverpool, Rio Ferdinand wonders if Luke Shaw could be given the captain’s armband.
When Manchester United was thrashed 7-0 by Liverpool in March, the outcome was rendered all the more spectacular by its unpredictability. United were in top form at the time. They had only beaten Barcelona a few weeks before, and they still had bubbles in their nostrils from the Carabao Cup final loss to Newcastle United.
So, even if that United club may potentially end up shipping seven goals at Anfield, the notion of this team returning to the site of perhaps their most wretched Premier League afternoon has Red Devils fans reaching for the aspirin.
No Bruno Fernandes for Man United vs Liverpool
To add to the air of gloom surrounding all things Manchester United, captain and creative lynchpin Bruno Fernandes will be in the stands on Merseyside as well. Suspended after receiving another yellow card in Bournemouth’s defeat on Saturday.
And, for Rio Ferdinand, the absence of apparent candidates for the armband speaks much about Ten Hag’s leader-light group. Of course, a resurrected Harry Maguire is an option. But will Ten Hag really give such a high-pressure responsibility back to a man who only recently lost the captaincy?
“You’d think it would be Harry Maguire, given that he was the last captain,” Ferdinand tells talkSPORT. “But I don’t know who he will go with. There’s not many names jumping off the team sheet.
“Luke Shaw, maybe?
Luke Shaw has never captained United before
Even though Shaw has never captained the club, as one of the longest-serving members of the United squad, a player who signed from Southampton all the way back in 2014 appears like one of the more sensible possibilities open to Ten Hag. Particularly with Casemiro out, Raphael Varane out, and Marcus Rashford off of form.
Lisandro Martinez and Christian Eriksen may have been in contention as well, but they will also miss the trip to Anfield as Ten Hag continues to struggle with so many of his regular first-team players missing.
