Harry Maguire has come out fighting, defending his record with England and his standing in the footballing world.
The English defender started his career successfully at Manchester United when he signed in 2019. He was made club captain by the then manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, less than six months into his debut season.
However, after a relatively positive first campaign, the defender has since had a torrid career with the Red Devils and he has become the butt of many social media jibes.
However, an injury crisis in United’s defence this campaign has led to the defender getting regular gametime this season and he has already played eleven times for the club. The Englishman also scored the game winner in a crucial victory against Copenhagen at Old Trafford in the Champions League. He spoke after the game about how proud he was of the turnaround in form he has achieved in recent months.
That new-found confidence was evident when speaking to The Times recently.
The man from Sheffield claimed that he is “appreciated in the dressing room”, and that he is also “really appreciated in the football world” by coaches, players and ex-players. The Peoples Person recently reported that David Beckham reached out to Maguire after the defender scored a calamitous own goal versus Scotland.
The 30 year old also spoke about his love of playing for England and how he is desperate to play every minute of the Euros next summer and get the Three Lions over the line by winning a major tournament. The Englishman confidently asserted that “I know I’m appreciated by the England fans who I’ve made many memories with over the years”.
Maguire went on to wax lyrical about his passion for representing England and how he dreamed of pulling on the white shirt as a kid. The former United captain asserted that he wants to play every minute, start every game and help the lads.
There was also time in the interview for United’s number five to label his England teammate, Harry Kane, the best striker in the world.
The Englishman claimed that Kane was a leader on the pitch and he knew that wherever he went in the summer, that he would score goals. This has been proven true as the England captain has taken the Bundesliga by storm by netting 17 goals in only 11 matches.
Maguire continued his praise by stating “he’s a nightmare to play against and can put the ball in the back of the net from any angle. His movement’s very good, he’s a focal point in the team”.
The England international finished by agreeing with the interviewer that keeping Kane quiet will be a daunting task when Bayern Munich come to Old Trafford in December, in what could be a vital game for the Red Devils in their quest to reach the last 16 of Champions League.
United fans will be hoping that Maguire is as confident about himself after that particular game as he was in this interview.