Erik ten Hag was avoiding discussing Cristiano Ronaldo when he noted the promise of Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez as a partnership against Rayo Vallecano, only he had already assigned Harry Maguire first-choice status.
In that same discussion at AAMI Park in Melbourne last month Ten Hag clarified Martinez, a £55.3million acquisition, had been recruited to strengthen the team, not the squad.
So Varane's omission for the opening weekend defeat to Brighton was inevitable. Louis van Gaal admitted the captaincy guaranteed Wayne Rooney privileges and retrospectively conceded he was "over the hill".
Rooney avoided an outright demotion by Van Gaal until a bruising Boxing Day at Stoke in 2015 that marked United's fourth consecutive defeat. Also read: Varane explains how Casemiro will improve United Maguire's privileges have expired quickly.