Both talkSPORT’s Ally McCoist and Jamie O’Hara think Harry Maguire could be a good fit at Tottenham Hotspur.
But should the Manchester United captain switch allegiances and sign for his club’s Premier League rivals in January, just how would Spurs boss Antonio Conte fit him in his playing system?
Maguire has had an underwhelming season with Man United so far, starting just nine games under Erik ten Hag, leading fans to question his place in the 2022 World Cup England squad.
But since then the centre-back has rediscovered his previous form, and was one of the best players for the Three Lions in their run in Qatar – and talkSPORT’s pundits thinks a move to somewhere like Spurs, where he won’t be sat on the bench, would be a smart choice.
“I think he [Maguire] will move,” McCoist told talkSPORT. “I don’t think he may move, I’ll go one further – I think he will move.
He continued: “Straight away off the top of my head, I’d say he’s good enough for Spurs.”
Ex-Tottenham player and avid Spurs fan O’Hara later agreed, saying: “Say Spurs come in for him in January, I’d take him at Tottenham by the way. We need a centre-half.”
But the question is how would Maguire fit in to Conte’s finely tuned 3-4-3 formation? talkSPORT.com has taken a look…
How would Maguire fit into Spurs’ XI?
Luckily for Maguire, Conte plays with three central defenders, which means there’s less competition compared to a two-man centre-back paring.
He’s also clearly much better suited to three at the back, as shown in previous tournaments with England compared with his Man United form – although he was part of a back four in Qatar.
As he’s placed on the left side for the Three Lions and for Man United when he’s put in the team, it’s likely the Spurs boss would put his new signing there too.
That would of course mean Spurs’ current left-sided central defender Ben Davies – who went up against Maguire with Wales in Group B at the World Cup – would be dropped.
Maguire would then be looking to feed the ball to Conte’s left wing-back Ryan Sessegnon and to create chances for his long term England teammate and captain, Harry Kane.
To Maguire’s right and taking up the centre spot of the back three would be other Three Lions teammate Eric Dier. Whilst the pair didn’t play alongside each other at this World Cup, they did at Russia 2018.
Maguire’s aerial-dual success rate is probably something Spurs are currently missing from their backline, too.
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