Breaking news: Manchester United finally kicks Harry Maguire out of Squad ,as club announces his new club ,as new manager set to take charge .

 International friendlies never 

mean anything, right? Well, this Saturday

 evening might be a different story 

for Harry Maguire.

The Manchester United captain is 

enduring the most difficult spell of his 

Old Trafford career to date, heading 

off to England duty fresh off a calamitous

 own goal and being knocked out of the

 Champions League over the past fortnight

. A rocky season has led the 28-year

-old's future with the Red Devils to 

be put under threat, with more and

 more questions being asked of his

 long-term suitability by the day.

In contrast to his displays at club level

, Maguire is usually imperious for 

England, regularly chipping in with goals

 - like Roy Keane's favourite knee-slide

 celebration - and, crucially, being

 suited to Gareth Southgate's three-man

 defensive system. However, even the

 comfort of wearing three lions on 

his shirt might not improve his 

predicament this weekend.

With England welcoming Switzerland 

to Wembley on Saturday, the £80million

 man is set to face off against the ace 

tipped to replace him in United's backline

: Manuel Akanji. The Borussia Dortmund

 centre-back has recently been linked

 with a move to Old Trafford and with 

Raphael Varane's place assured at 

Old Trafford, it'll be Maguire's spot 

on the line if Akanji joins.

The Red Devils are reportedly keen 

on signing the Swiss defender, who's

 on a 'farewell tour' of Dortmund in 

the final two months of the season. 

With his contract expiring in less than 

18 months' time and no new deal on 

the horizon, the Bundesliga behemoths

 keen to recoup some cash for the 

26-year-old and interim United 

manager Ralf Rangnick is said 

to be a fan.

Akanji has been a Dortmund player

 since January 2018, with the highly

-rated prospect joining from his native

 Basel for a cool £20m. That was the

 club's second-highest outlay of 

that term, a vote of confidence in his 

elite credentials. When fit, Akanji 

has lived up to his price tag by 

establishing himself as a regular 

under four different managers.

And the then youngster's acclimation

 to German football was helped by forging

 a friendship with Jadon Sancho, 

now a Red Devil after his own departure

 last summer - the third BVB star 

that United have signed over the past

 nine years. But it soon could be four

 as a result of Dortmund bidding 

to refresh their backline over the summer.

Entrusting Marco Rose to bring them 

back to title contention, the club have 

already agreed to bring in Niklas Sule

 when his contract with rivals Bayern

 Munich runs out in June. Add to that

 their pursuit of Freiburg sensation 

Nico Schlotterbeck, who could cost 

as little as £16.8m, and it appears 

plans for the post-Akanji are well underway.

It wouldn't come as a shock for the 

Switzerland international to be eyeing

 up his next move either, with BVB failing

 to meet Akanji's demands of an annual

 salary worth €12m. Dortmund are

 renowned for keeping a rigid wage

 structure to avoid financial mismanagement

, setting up a possible switch to 

his "dream" club.

"I have a big dream, to get as far as 

possible in football," he declared in 

an interview with NZZ after signing 

for BVB. "Since my childhood days, 

Manchester United have been favourites 

 club. I'd like to play there one day. 

But right now, that's not an issue. I 

am happy at Dortmund and try to 

be the best possible person off

 the pitch."

Rangnick has seen Akanji's pedigree

 on show while in Germany and although

 the acclaimed coach's consultancy

 role - which begins at the end of the

 season - has been described as 'not 

hands-on', his track record of identifying

 top talents can't be ignored by Old Trafford

 chiefs, who've failed in their recruitment

 policy in recent years.

His competence on the ball with both 

feet mirrors that of Maguire's, who 

is similarly vocal and enjoys marshalling 

the defence. To further comparisons between

 the duo, the 6ft 3in Red Devils skipper

 has the edge in the air and availability, 

while age and speed is most certainly 

on Akanji's side, something ex-centre-

back Rio Ferdinand believes United 

need in order to play the modern way.

"For all the good traits that [Maguire

 has in his game, [pace] is a big weakness

 and that is a fundamental of all of the

 top teams; to be able to play one-v-

one on the halfway line," Ferdinand 

admitted on his YouTube channel,

 Vibe with Five. "So, I think for Maguire

, long-term - unless he can find that

 extra yard of pace - it's gonna be 

difficult for him."

Maguire is hoping to re-find his form

 on England duty

And plenty can vouch for Akanji's pace, 

with former Dortmund boss Peter 

Stoger noting his speed after deploying

 him in an unfamiliar position for their

 4-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen

. "It's clear that Manuel's a really good

 footballer with real pace," Stoger 

affirmed post-match. "We knew he 

could play left-back, and he didn't

 disappoint."

That being said, added competition

 could push Maguire to improve, just 

as Alex Telles' arrival in 2020 prompted

 Luke Shaw's best season in Manchester. 

It'd also be a bold call for a new manager

 to dump the club captain out of the 

starting XI too, with Varane not yet

 proving his fitness on a consistent basis.

And he's got the backing of Southgate, 

who had 'no doubts' over selecting 

him for England's friendly double-

header this month, with Ivory Coast to 

come next Tuesday. "I don't think it 

ever crossed our minds not to select 

Harry Maguire for this squad," the 

Three Lions boss explained. "He's 

been a key part of the starting XI 

that got us to a World Cup semi-final

 and a Euros final. There's no doubt

 in my mind that he's one of our 

best centre-backs."

Akanji's contract with Dortmund 

expires in June 2023.