The signing of Jonny Evans by Manchester United caught everyone by surprise.
Signed on a short-term deal initially for just the pre-season, manager Erik ten Hag recently said that a longer contract for the Northern Irishman is in the works.
At 35, coming off a relegation campaign, most are expecting him to be an emergency injury cover for the first team while mainly being a calming locker-room presence.
Not Rio Ferdinand.
On his YouTube channel Five, Ferdinand sensationally claimed that he reckons Jonny Evans will be ahead of Harry Maguire in the centre-back pecking order at the club.
It is another reminder of how far Maguire’s prospects at the club have fallen.
Nearly two years ago, the former United captain was the first name on the teamsheet under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer then Ralf Rangnick.
Erik ten Hag came in and after initially giving him a few chances to stake his claim, benched him permanently in favour of his Lisandro Martinez-Raphael Varane centre-back pairing.
Currently, he is the fifth-choice at the position, with even natural left-back Luke Shaw ahead of him, along with Victor Lindelof.
However, if Evans does indeed end up being ahead of him, rendering him sixth-choice, then Maguire might regret his decision of not leaving United when West Ham bid for him.
As good as Evans is, if he is preferred over a player who’s on £200k/week, was the United captain less than two months ago, and was ever-present during United’s most successful season post-Sir Alex, alarm bells should ring for the player.
Ultimately, Ten Hag might decide that Evans suits his style of play better than Maguire, which would be a damning indictment of the English international’s qualities, continuing the theme of his United career for the last two years.