Maguire or Lindelof: Who should be our starting CB in Varane’s absence?

Would likely depend on the style of the opposition.

For teams who will look to play long and subject us to repeated high-balls, Maguire fits better. Against teams looking to press and play higher up the pitch, I'd choose Lindelof.

Long-term I'd like Maguire to be upgraded and Lindelof to function as the Martinez back-up.
 
Lindelof. I don’t necessarily think he's much better than Maguire but I do think he fits the profile of a Varane replacement much better than Maguire does and I think he's be better if we're on the front foot attacking teams.
 
Can we get a poll mods?

I prefer lindelof as well and would guess he'd be the option for about 75% of the fanbase.
 
Id rate Lindelof higher than Maguire but Maguire adds much needed height on set pieces.
So its 50/50 for me.
 
Lindelof for me, that said, I reckon Maguire could easily plant 2 headed goals off corners tonight!

Without him and Ronaldo (both of who shouldn't really be starting if we had a fully fit squad), we look toothless on corners.

I really hope Rashford and Casemiro (who's supposed to be a good header of the ball) can start being consistent threats in that sense as well.
 
It’s a situational decision based on form. If either drops a nasty turd it would be mad to stick with stick on a shit.
 
Lindelof in general, but I think Maguire was right against West Ham, which he proved in the second half. But in a general sense there seems to be a drop in overall confidence in the team when Maguire plays.
 
lex talionis said:
It’s a situational decision based on form. If either drops a nasty turd it would be mad to stick with stick on a shit.
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I think fecal matters get to much attention when evaluating football players. I would prefer Maguire tonight, and that has nothing to do with excrements. His positional movements where improving throughout the West Ham game, that counts more than bowel movements. Lindelöf has been absent for a couple of games now with some sickness, so it makes more stense to start with Maguire, the smell, consistency and colour of his poop is irrelevant to this.(Or wait, maybe it isn’t!).
 
It's Lindelof for me. He's a better fit for the role, and has played better than Maguire generally for quite some time.
 
Depends on the opponent. I think vs majority of the teams Lindelof should be starting as he is better with the ball at his feet and is slightly more mobile and quicker. Maguire starting vs West Ham was the right thing, where I think vs teams who cross non-stop and have bigger and more physical players, Maguire's only real attributes standout.
 
Really does depend on the opposition.

Lindelof is better on the ball than Maguire, especially under pressure, so is probably a better fit in matches where we're likely to control possession. On the other hand, Maguire is a more proactive defender than Lindelof, and is thus likely to be better when we're facing a high volume of attacks.

Of course, on top of the opponent, form is also important in making this decision. In that regard, Maguire has been far from brilliant this season, but I equally do not belong in the camp that has been in any way impressed by Lindelof either. I think the next few matches could help me make up my mind on this question.
 
Depends on the opposition. Lindelof doesn’t make as many unforced errors so it’s him. He’s bad in the air though.
 
Who's Kissing Cameras? said:
Depends on the opposition. Lindelof doesn’t make as many unforced errors so it’s him. He’s bad in the air though.
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On the ball I'd agree with this assessment. Defensively I'd argue Lindelof makes just as many errors as Maguire (if not more), they're just less obvious because they usually involve him completely failing to put in a challenge as opposed to putting in a challenge and missing it. It was comical against Omonia.
 
Against Stoke, Maguire. Against anybody else Lindelof.
 
I am not saying Maguire is perfect but those saying Lindelof - go back and watch the West Ham game, more specifically West Ham's corners/freekicks. I've watched the game back and Maguire wins 90% of them against the likes of Zouma, Cresswell, Soucek - he is much needed when Varane isn't there. Maybe tonight Lindelof is a better shout given we will want to be on the front foot and pressing them - but I know who I want to start when we go up against Fulham/Mitrovic next weekend
 
If we sit back deep and defend 1-0 lead the last 20 minutes, Maguire is a super sub to have. For all other scenarios I would prefer Lindelof.

Glorio said:
Lindelof for me, that said, I reckon Maguire could easily plant 2 headed goals off corners tonight!

Without him and Ronaldo (both of who shouldn't really be starting if we had a fully fit squad), we look toothless on corners.

I really hope Rashford and Casemiro (who's supposed to be a good header of the ball) can start being consistent threats in that sense as well.
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Maguire has scored 4 goals for us in 135 matches of PL+CL+EL. Considering many hundreds of corners were aimed towards his head, I think that is a poor result. Lindelof has scored 3 goals in 151 starts, with hardly any corners aimed at him. I think the difference is too small to be a factor
 
DanNistelrooy said:
I am not saying Maguire is perfect but those saying Lindelof - go back and watch the West Ham game, more specifically West Ham's corners/freekicks. I've watched the game back and Maguire wins 90% of them against the likes of Zouma, Cresswell, Soucek - he is much needed when Varane isn't there. Maybe tonight Lindelof is a better shout given we will want to be on the front foot and pressing them - but I know who I want to start when we go up against Fulham/Mitrovic next weekend
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I don't even really think it's just aerial; Maguire is generally better at defensive duels than Lindelof.

Against Fulham, though, you might need to weigh up the pros and cons because Lindelof is equally better at playing the ball under pressure than Maguire. It really does depend on whether ETH plans to control the game early doors or not.
 
If we have a sustained run with (the undroppable) Lisandro and Lindelof…my heart might not be able to handle more than 3 corners per game. For that reason alone I begrudgingly feel like we need to pair Maguire…
 
Lindelof is actually a good fit for ETH system. Decent cover for Varane.
Maguire is the club captain though, it shouldn't be a reason to get the go ahead but that and the English media campaign could be a factor.
I'll choose Lindelof all day long though.
 
Easy decision for me, it’s Lindelof. We look more assured with him and Martinez at the back when Varane’s not fit. Whereas Maguire just spreads panic through the whole stadium when he plays. Although tbf he did alright against West Ham but it suited his game perfectly when they were pumping balls into the box late on.
 
Unless it's a big physical team who will try to bully us like West Ham, Lindelof.

He's the better passer of the ball and ticks more (if not many more) boxes ten Hag needs in his system
 
Maguire, but it really depends on form for me. I think he played well the last game and if he can find some consistency it'll be better for the team.
 
At their best they're both good/very good international level defenders but for me the choice falls between the consideration of their worst qualities:

Lindelof- often too passive, non-committal with his defending.
Maguire- clumsy, always has a mistake in him, and slow to turn

At the moment i'd just give the nod to Lindelof but Maguire played really well last game so, it's tricky.
 
I would start with Lindelof and bring Maguire on if we are under the cosh and start to retreat at the end of a game.
 
Either Maguire steps up massively or he won’t be at United for too long. Lindelof is not great but at least he moves the ball faster. Lindelof seems more likely to be trained into a good CB than Maguire.
 
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