Erik ten Hag must make difficult Manchester United decision he has asked for

At some clubs, they put the captaincy or the leadership group out to a vote, but for Erik ten Hag the decision at Manchester United is solely the preserve of the manager, which means he has a big call to make this summer.

Manchester City's players vote for their leadership group every pre-season, but Ten Hag shut down the idea of such a possibility after United's first friendly of the summer in Oslo.

But the fact that this pre-season has started with questions about the captaincy, just as last year's did as well, must be enough for the Dutchman to realise that the decision can't be avoided any longer.

Against Leeds United on Wednesday it was Raphael Varane who was captain in the first half and Charlie Savage in the second half, but the real decision for Ten Hag is the identity of his club captain and a situation that feels like it has to change.

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A year ago Ten Hag came in and backed Harry Maguire for a place in the team and as captain, but it took just two Premier League games for that to change. Varane and Lisandro Martinez were the first-choice central defensive pairing by September and by the end of the season Maguire was behind Victor Lindelof at centre-back.

That led to a situation where the club captain started just eight of 30 Premier League games. Maguire would wear the armband when he was on the pitch, but it was Bruno Fernandes who captained the team more often. When United won the Carabao Cup at Wembley in February they lifted the trophy together, usually a sure sign of a dysfunctional leadership set-up.

Towards the end of the season Ten Hag did praise Maguire's leadership, explaining he had improved in that department at