‘We pay him’ – Peter Schmeichel blasts Red Devils star, tells him to prioritise Man Utd over his country

Manchester United will start the 2024-25 campaign without England international left-back Luke Shaw, with the 29-year-old out of action due to a calf injury sustained at the start of pre-season training and not expected to be available for selection until after the international break in September.

The Red Devils are without a senior left-back right now with Tyrell Malacia yet to return to first-team training after missing the whole of 2023-24, and Peter Schmeichel has slammed Shaw for not prioritising Man United over England.

The full-back missed a large chunk of last season due to several injuries, only featuring in 12 Premier League games, but he was at the European Championships with the Three Lions, and Schmeichel has suggested he should have been resting instead of opting to feature at the tournament.

“Luke Shaw did not play at all since February,” the former goalkeeper told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“He didn’t play for Man United and yet he still went to the Euros. I think he played a little bit in the quarter-final, and then some of the semi-final and then he played the final. Now, he’s injured again. He’s so important.

“He’s got experience and he’s a really top-class left-back. He’s a Manchester United player – we pay him. He should be focusing and prioritising Manchester United and not his country.”

Shaw would not have been willing to miss out on Euro 2024 after discovering he had a chance to play despite heading to Germany not fully fit.

The Man United star wants to play whenever he can, and claiming he prioritised England over the Red Devils is not completely right.

There are no guarantees that Shaw would have been fit right now had he chosen to stay at home instead of going to the Euros.

He has become very fragile and Man United should look to sign another left-back this summer or hand 17-year-old Harry Amass the chance to prove himself.

Lisandro Martinez started at left-back against Manchester City last Saturday before Diogo Dalot moved there later on.

While new signing Noussair Mazraoui is predominantly a right-back, he can also feature at left-back and could be named in the starting XI tonight should manager Erik ten Hag opt to play Dalot at right-back.