Rio Ferdinand has defended Luke Shaw following Manchester United's victory over Ipswich Town, calling the left-back one of the club's top four or five performers over the past year. Ferdinand believes Manchester United should seek a backup for Luke Shaw rather than a direct replacement before the transfer deadline.

Ferdinand has advocated for Manchester United to sign a backup left-back for Luke Shaw ahead of the summer transfer deadline, rather than seeking a direct replacement. Shaw and other players under Erik ten Hag's management came under heavy criticism following last weekend's Premier League opening loss to newly promoted Hull City.

The 31-year-old left-back got off to a rocky start against Ipswich on Sunday, when he was caught out by Omari Hutchinson in the 29th minute. Hutchinson subsequently provided an assist for Liam Delap's goal.

However, Bruno Fernandes scored a hat-trick as Manchester United mounted a powerful comeback, ultimately securing a 5-2 victory at Old Trafford—their first win of the season.

Ten Hag replaced Shaw with Noussair Mazraoui with 17 minutes remaining in regular time, one of five substitutions the manager made during the intense second half.

After the match, Ferdinand strongly defended Shaw on his podcast, describing the English left-back as one of Manchester United's most "consistent" players over the past 12 months. According to Ferdinand, Manchester United should pursue a left-back who can gradually develop into the role, rather than someone brought in as a direct replacement for their longest-serving player.

Ferdinand said: "In my group chat, some Manchester United fans say 'Get rid of Shaw!'... Luke Shaw is one of our most consistent players over the past year, and you sit there and say 'He shouldn't be here' or 'He should go elsewhere'... No!"

"Go find a left-back we're willing to work with slowly and develop as a backup like Luke Shaw. Do you think you can just go into the market and find someone? It might cost £60 million, and we don't have that kind of money! We don't have the budget after spending so much on midfield reinforcements."

Ferdinand believes one below-par performance is insufficient reason for fans to demand Shaw's departure. He added: "Look, Luke Shaw can certainly play better than that, but do we need to strengthen that position right now? No. We need a backup for that position at the moment, and we need to think long-term."

"Don't be too reactionary. A lot of people are reactionary, they're bitter, they want to make others feel like they're not good enough. Just look at his performances over the past year. In terms of consistency, he's absolutely one of our top four or five players—no question. One below-par game today won't change my opinion of him."

"The only thing I'll say is, at left-back, there's no ready-made backup you feel confident could step in immediately. We don't have anyone like that right now."

Throughout the summer, Manchester United have been linked with several left-backs, including Newcastle's Lewis Hall. However, Newcastle reportedly rejected selling Hall, and Manchester United appear to be running out of time to reinforce that position.

"It seems the club doesn't view Harry Amass as that player, because right now he appears to be some distance from that level," Ferdinand continued. "That's just a fact, regardless of whether we believe Harry Amass is good enough or not."

"The club clearly doesn't see it that way, so I won't interpret it as: replacing Luke Shaw. I'll interpret it as: finding someone who can gradually become a backup in the future, because I still think Luke Shaw is perfectly capable. He simply has too many games this season and can't play every match."

Following the away defeat to Hull City, Ferdinand was pleased to see Fernandes and teammates deliver an "exciting" performance against Ipswich, another newly promoted side. Regarding Manchester United's display: "After a somewhat frustrating first half, it was brilliant to see this kind of football. We wasted too many chances, and they could have gone ahead in the first half."

"I'd say the first half was quite tense, but football is for entertainment, and you have to embrace that. We were being too nitpicky, too critical. Sometimes a game is just about entertainment. You buy a ticket to sit and watch the game, or you sit on the sofa and watch and enjoy it? Manchester United today brought us a lot of joy, so you know what? After the first half, I was satisfied."

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