Manchester United captain Harry Maguire allegedly believes that David de Gea's 'lack of communication' and 'reluctance to defend further away from his goal-line' have contributed to his struggles.
Maguire kept hold of the captain's armband, and his starting role, at Old Trafford heading into the 2022-23 campaign despite his struggles for form last term.
The 29-year-old has not started a Premier League game since the 4-0 defeat at Brentford on August 13, though, with his only league outing since then coming as a late substitute against Arsenal.
Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane have become Man United's first-choice centre-back pairing, with Maguire now facing a battle to break back into the side.
According to ESPN, Maguire believes that De Gea's 'lack of communication' was a problem for him, while the centre-back also struggled with the goalkeeper being unwilling to push higher up the field.
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Despite his struggles for football in recent weeks, Maguire has been named in the England squad for the national team's upcoming UEFA Nations League games with Italy and Germany.
There had been claims that Maguire's issues at club level could count against him when it comes to the 2022 World Cup, which is due to begin in November.
However, England head coach Gareth Southgate has allegedly offered the former Sheffield United youngster assurances over his place in the starting XI.
"Gareth has been in contact and assured him that he has a lot of credit in the bank with England thanks to his previous performances," The Sun recently quoted source as saying.
"Naturally he wants to play and is worried that not getting game time might affect his place in the England team ahead of the World Cup. But he's spoken to Gareth who has told him he has no need to worry at the moment.
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"He's been told there's enough credit in the bank with England because he has never let the national side down. For the time being at least, he's still firmly part of the manager's plans for Qatar."
Maguire has been capped on 46 occasions by his country, scoring seven times in the process, and he is expected to be in the starting side against Italy on Friday night.
"Harry needs pace around him, but he hasn't had that," a source close to Maguire told ESPN. "If you put Ruben Dias in the United defence and Harry in the City (Manchester City) back four, Dias would struggle and Harry would thrive.
"Harry hasn't had a good 12 months, but he hasn't been helped by those around him, coaches or players, so it's inevitable that his confidence and form have suffered."
Maguire played the full 90 minutes of Man United's Europa League clash with Real Sociedad on September 8, but he was back on the bench against Sheriff Tiraspol last week, only appearing for the final minute of the contest in Moldova.
Matt Law
