Harry Maguire learns Man Utd transfer fate after brutal phone call from Erik ten Hag

Harry Maguire's time at Manchester United appears to be drawing to a close, following discussions between Erik ten Hag and Dan Ashworth . The England defender's future has been in doubt for some time now, with his responsibilities diminishing since Ten Hag stripped him of the captaincy.

Now, it seems his playing time could be further reduced next season as United are determined to bring in a new centre-back. Despite having their offer for Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite turned down, they remain keen on Matthijs de Ligt from Bayern Munich.

Ten Hag has already indicated that should De Ligt join, Maguire will find himself further down the pecking order. It's understood that Ten Hag has spoken to De Ligt about his vision for the team , viewing him as a key defensive figure in a 4-3-3 formation alongside Lisandro Martinez.

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This has reportedly motivated De Ligt to push for a move after Euro 2024, where the Netherlands have reached the semi-finals and will face England. While De Ligt's transfer seems likely, Maguire is left with a difficult decision.

The 31-year-old, who made only 18 Premier League starts last season and has just one year left on his contract, may be sold by United's new sporting director Dan Ashworth, who is keen not to lose the $103m (£80m/€95m) asset for free next summer.

It was previously reported that United were considering using Maguire as part of a swap deal for Branthwaite. West Ham, who had shown interest before, are unlikely to pursue him again after securing Wolves captain Max Kilman.

Reflecting on his near-move to the London Stadium last season, Maguire revealed: "The actual opportunity to go to West Ham wasn't agreed really between both clubs and myself. So it wasn't just my chance to say, Yes and I'm going'. It wasn't agreed between both clubs so the actual opportunity wasn't there because we didn't get far enough down the line with it."

"But West Ham is a massive club. But like I said my full focus is still on Manchester United, I want to fight for my place but of course regular game time is really important to me."

Last season, when discussing Maguire's future, Ten Hag confessed he was glad the defender remained at Old Trafford. He stated: "We were always very happy with Harry Maguire, but he wants to play. He's a great leader, he's a very good defender and very comfortable on the ball."

"When I count all of those abilities, on our defending line we have problems, he is even more important to lead that line and to make us play from the back. We are very pleased he is there and we need him to get our results and achieve our targets."