England manager Gareth Southgate has urged Luke Shaw to force his way into Jose Mourinho’s plans at Manchester United. The left-back was called up for the England squad for the two games during the international break, playing just seven minutes against the German's as a substitute.
Southgate believes that Shaw needs to play regularly for his club in order to feature for England as more than just a substitute. Shaw has featured only twice in 2017 for United as he struggles to impress Mourinho, with the Portuguese admitting that Shaw has the potential to succeed , but that he needs to work harder in training.
Shaw falling behind in pecking order
The English defender was lucky to be included in the squad for the games against Germany and Lithuania. He is currently the third choice left-back for his nation behind Tottenham Hotspur’s Danny Rose and Southampton’s Ryan Bertrand, with Rose's injury allowing Shaw to get a place in the squad.
Southgate admitted that “England have got some pretty good left-backs, so it’s great to have that competition.”
Shaw was on the right track to become country’s first choice left-back as he started the last season strongly. However, he suffered a double leg break against PSV Eindhoven, and the youngster is still recovering from that break and working on his fitness to get in optimum physical condition.
Shaw determined to become a regular at United
Southgate believes that “Shaw must force his way back for United.” The English manager insisted that the 21-year-old is “willing to take the challenge, which is a good thing," before adding that United have “numerous games in next two months for him to stake a claim."
The Portuguese recently admitted that Shaw is progressing well with his physical condition and with the club's injuries at the left-back position, Shaw is an able candidate to solve that problem. The former Saints star is still a player with bags of potential, he just needs to make the chances count which he should get in upcoming run of games with his club.