Thomas Hein
The list of Manchester United’s problems is long and wide-reaching. It’s been like this for a number of years now. While they’ve managed to clinch a few second-tier titles to suggest some success, their fans, opposition, and the neutrals know that this era of United is troubled and underwhelming, nothing like the juggernaut of Ferguson’s time at the club.
Harry Maguire is a name on the list of problems that everyone who cares to comment refers back. Having signed for a world-record fee in the summer of 2019, much was expected.
It didn’t take long for him to be made club captain – and Ragnick continues to support the English defender in this role. Since then, though, due to the profile of the club he captains and the standard of his performances, he has come under intense scrutiny.
When looking at odds on a betting site like Casumo, you will notice that Manchester United are not expected to finish in the top four. This is a damning sign of where they are.
Is this a Harry-Maguire problem though, or is it how Manchester United have expected him to defend?
Tactical Issues at Old Trafford
Manchester United are expected to play in a different manner to that of Leicester City or Hull City. They are expected to dominate games in established attack, established defence, and in transition. All major teams at the moment attempt this and often do it successfully – which Liverpool, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City serve as examples of.
As such, Maguire has to defend differently. He will be defending more space, for instance. Watch Virgil Van Dijk, Dayot Upamenco, or Rueben Dias and you will notice that they have to be a presence in most areas of the defence – left, right, and centre, switching with centre-back partners, covering full-backs, and moving into midfield.
Maguire plays well for his country. He is asked to defend less space. Maguire struggles for Manchester United. He is asked to defend more space.
Rangick – and Pochettino and Ten Haag who could be the permanent appointment in the summer – will ask Maguire to defend more space than he may be comfortable doing. But that doesn’t mean he can’t learn or improve.
What are Maguire’s Strengths?
One of Maguire’s strengths is his aerial prowess. From offensive and defensive set pieces, he is effective. He is towering and he is a unit. He’s hard to beat when airborne. England have made great use of this at international tournaments.
Set pieces are becoming an obvious focus for ‘smart’ teams – the likes of Liverpool and Brentford – so the incoming manager and the club may be able to utilise Maguire as the target or a decoy in the coming season.
His crowning skill, though, is his distribution. In build-up, Maguire is one of the league’s best. He is a great ball-carrier, breaking the opposition’s defensive lines with dribbles, attracting attention and collapsing structures to open the space for dangerous final-third players like Sancho.
His passing is also a widely underrated skill. He can be safe, but his ambitious range often pays off, getting the ball into dangerous areas. This will be something Pochettino or Ten Haag will love.
Maguire has to be the first name on the team sheet. Yes, he’s club captain. However, his value in attack makes it difficult to leave him out, especially when United struggle in build-up anyway, so removing him will likely only make things more stale and difficult.
