Victor Lindelof became a more than capable stand-in towards the end of last season when Lisandro Martinez, arguably Manchester United’s player of the season, pulled up unchallenged during the bizarre 2-2 draw against Sevilla in the Europa League.
There were fears it would be an Achilles injury for the Argentine defender but those fears were allayed quite quickly, nevertheless, the Swedish defender, Lindelof, took his chance at United during the former Ajax defender’s absence.
The former Benfica man came in alongside Raphael Varane and looked assured at the heart of the defence. In the FA Cup final, Erling Haaland was limited to a shot from the edge of the box.
Lindelof, alongside Varane, marshalled the Norwegian very well and, despite the loss, was praised for his performance.
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Differing fortunes of Maguire and Lindelof
Well, with the tour of the U.S. coming up, questions are being asked about his teammate, who used to figure alongside Lindelof prominently under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Harry Maguire.
With the Englishman seemingly on the periphery of Erik ten Hag’s squad next season, United are willing to cut Maguire loose but the messaging is different when it comes to the Swedish captain Lindelof.
It seems Lindelof is still part of Ten Hag’s plan and it’s hard to disagree with the Dutch manager. With injury issues surrounding Raphael Varane only going to get worse as he gets older, Lindelof, who has a superb injury record, is a more than capable deputy in the heart of the defence.
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If Maguire were to be sold, the 29-year-old would be part of the three centre-back rotation and with the potential arrival of Monaco’s Axel Disasi, too, United have more than enough depth in the centre-back area.
Could Lindelof stake a claim to start next season
It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that Lindelof could start the season alongside Martinez, but Varane was also superb throughout the majority of last season.
But, what is likely to be the case is that Varane will start and Lindelof will likely play the Champions League games and the domestic cup games in the Frenchman’s absence, as Ten Hag manages the defender’s workload.
If Maguire is to be sold this summer, then perhaps Lindelof should earn more praise for working his way back into Ten Hag’s plans and making himself a more than capable deputy in either Varane’s or Martinez’s absence.