One moment sums up the difference between Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire as Manchester United captain

On the League Cup media day at Carrington in February, Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire sauntered over from the main building to the Jimmy Murphy Centre to attend engagements for the final’s programme.

Three of us were waiting on the ground floor for Marcus Rashford, having already spoken to Lisandro Martinez. When Fernandes was escorted through the double-glass doors, he noticed the three journalists and shook each of us by the hand.

When Maguire entered, he was on his phone, offered a “hello” and headed upstairs. A little can mean a lot.

By that time, the captain’s armband must have felt snug on Fernandes’s bicep. He had led United to a spirited victory over Crystal Palace the previous day and captained them in all but nine of United’s fixtures.

Fernandes was at ease with the greater responsibility. The first time he skippered United in Paris in October 2020, he was wide-eyed and his eyebrow arched when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer announced his promotion. The revelation was captured live on the Zoom call.

There was little fanfare about Maguire’s bump up in January 2020. Solskjaer had said in an earlier press conference he viewed Maguire as captain material and Maguire was at the front of the queue for the Europa League group game against Partizan Belgrade three months earlier.

Maguire was the fastest player to be appointed United captain following their signing since Maurice Setters in 1962. He was Solskjaer’s man and £80million signing. That always made his position untenable once Solskjaer wiped away the tears after his exit interview in November 2021.

At Watford’s Vicarage Road, Solskjaer attended his post-match Zoom in the Elton John Stand. He was still standing, but not for long. Maguire clumsily felled Tom Cleverley for a second bookable offence with United 2-1 down in the second half. They were thumped 4-1.

Maguire had risibly cupped his ears in celebration on England duty the previous week. He and his family have been sensitive to criticism and his parents tweeted jubilantly after Maguire scored in the 4-1 win at Newcastle in October 2020. Maguire had started the month captaining United in a 6-1 pummeling by Tottenham before receiving a red card on England duty.

The night before United played Atalanta in Bergamo, one of Maguire’s family members became visibly upset when a United fan within earshot began bemoaning his form, unaware the Maguires were also present.

Last season, Maguire misread the room in an interview with Sky Sports. “I wouldn’t be playing every game for Manchester United in the starting eleven if I’d been playing bad every game,” he protested. “There’s a reason why both managers have put me in the starting eleven every game.”

That was aired on the evening that United were trounced 4-0 by Liverpool at Anfield.

Maguire was a good defender in a United team that were not challenging and not winning. Once the stakes were raised, he was found out and Erik ten Hag has handled his gradual decline faultlessly.

Ten Hag dropped Maguire two games into last season, rendering the peculiar power struggle between him and Cristiano Ronaldo moot. Both were on the bench for the uplifting defeat of Liverpool last August. Ronaldo is gone and Maguire may also be gone by September 1.