Harry Maguire has described missing Manchester United’s FA Cup final triumph over Manchester City and England’s Euro 2024 campaign with an injury as “probably the toughest moment” of his career.
A year ago Erik ten Hag stripped Maguire of the United captaincy and the defender came close to joining West Ham later in the summer. He was at that point the fifth-choice centre-back, behind Lisandro Martínez, Raphaël Varane, Victor Lindelöf and Luke Shaw.
Yet Maguire fought his way back into the team, making 31 appearances, 25 of which were starts, and would have played more but for injuries, the last a calf problem in early May.
The diagnosis was a three-week absence, meaning Maguire had a good chance of being available for the Cup final, but setbacks caused the 31-year-old to miss United’s 2-1 win over City as well as the Euros.
“It was probably the toughest moment of my career,” he said. “I worked so hard throughout the year to get myself to where I was in a really good position physically and mentally to play in the FA Cup final and then the Euros after that. It was just a calf injury, a three-week injury, but I had three setbacks with it.”
Shaw also missed the Cup final with a muscle problem but was chosen for the Euros by Gareth Southgate, despite the England manager not being able to select him during the opening stages.
Maguire was asked whether the same might have been possible for him. “I thought I’d be fit for the FA Cup final, then I had a setback. At that time again, I was going to be fit for the Euros. Then I went away with England and I had another setback. When I look back, I wish I had no chance with all of them, so I could have got my head around it.”
Despite this disappointment Maguire is pleased with how he forced his way back into Ten Hag’s plans. “I’m really proud,” he said. “I knew I had to bide my time and I spoke with the manager last [summer] about my situation, whether to move on for regular game time, but he fully believed in me; he always said there will be chances. I was really pleased with the way I handled last year. I thought my form was really good.”
Maguire, who has 12 months on his deal, could be sold this summer if United receive the right offer, though he wants to stay. “Until I get told: ‘You’re up for sale’ or ‘We want you to leave,’ I want to play for this club and make it successful again, and all the things I’m hearing and seeing from everyone involved is I’ll be part of it for the future,” he said.
Leny Yoro, an 18-year-old centre-back bought last week for £52m, will compete with Maguire for selection. “I must say I haven’t trained too much with him but I’ve seen clips and I’ve seen the attributes in a centre-back at 18 you’d want,” Maguire said. “We must remind ourselves he is really young, there are going to be mistakes, but I’m sure he’s going to have a bright future.”
Ten Hag signed a new contract this month after the uncertainty regarding his future that lasted most of last season. Maguire admits this was a factor in United’s lowest Premier League finish of eighth. “It probably did damage our performances and results throughout the season a little bit. But he handled it brilliantly, took each day as it came. From us players, we didn’t see anything different in the manager. It was tough.”
