Antonio Conte Picks 9 Players To Build Manchester United Team, Omissions Include Harry Maguire: Report

Antonio Conte, who is considered one of the possible replacements of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Manchester United manager, reportedly wants to build the team around nine players and the list does not include club captain Harry Maguire.

The nine players that are being favored by Conte are Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Pogba, Raphael Varane, Alex Telles, Bruno Fernandes, Anthony Martial, Jadon Sancho, Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford, reported Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport. However, International Business Times could not verify it independently.

Solskjaer created his so-called defense around Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka that leaked a total of five goals against Liverpool last weekend and their omission by Conte does not come as a surprise.

Conte, who has also managed former Premier League champions Chelsea in the past, is known to play with a back three and wing-backs and that explains Wan-Bissaka’s exclusion and Telles’ inclusion. Conte is known for playing with a back three and wing-backs which would explain Wan-Bissaka’s omission and Telles’ inclusion, according to Teamtalk.

Solskjaer is under tremendous pressure to turn tables around at Manchester United following the Red Devils’ heaviest defeat to arch-rivals Liverpool FC last weekend. Maguire and Co were thrashed 5-0 by Jurgen Klopp’s side and, now, Manchester United are seventh in the 2021-22 Premier League table.

While Solskjaer has been handed a three-game deadline to produce the desired results, a number of managers have been linked as his possible successors with Italian boss Conte being one of the top targets.

Conte is currently not managing any club after leading Inter Milan to the Serie A title last season.

Apart from Conte, another big name that is being considered as a possible replacement for Solskjaer is former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino. It has come as a surprise considering Pochiettino is well settled in Paris and is managing some of the biggest players of the current generation such as Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.

Earlier, former Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas named Conte as the toughest coach he has ever worked under. Fabregas and Conte worked together at Stamford Bridge for two years, where they won the Premier League and FA Cup.