Harry Maguire has recently revealed all about the darkest parts of his career amid his turbulent time at Manchester United.
The pressure at Manchester United is like no other in the Premier League. Even when the club were finishing in the top four and winning trophies, anything other than winning the league was still seen as a failure.
Even now, as the club sits just one point behind Crystal Palace in fourth, failing to win leads to intense media scrutiny and social media criticism.
The same pressure is placed on major signings, especially those with big price tags like Harry Maguire, who signed for £80 million for a then record fee for a defender.
However, with that pressure comes a much darker reality that, as fans, we never truly see.
Maguire reveals the worst moment in a United shirt
Maguire has had no shortage of ups and downs in his United career so far. A lot of criticism has gone from just criticism to personal abuse. But the defender never shied away from the limelight and continued to be available for the club.
In an interview with Discovery Plus, the Englishman opened up about his worst moment. “The worst time was probably the end of the third season, really.
“We were in a really poor position in the league, a lot of scrutiny on us, I was the captain at the time, so I took a lot of the responsibility and rightly so.”
Despite the scrutiny, Maguire remained humble about how things went for him during and since that moment.
“That was probably the worst time, but I don’t think it was as bad as made out or was portrayed in the media or social media, should I say. The redemption also wasn’t as good as people made out,” he said.
A role model for the club
Throughout the dark period, the defender always retained the respect of his teammates.
A player who has gone through hell and back should be someone who not only as an athlete, but as a human being should be respected. From a player being forced out of the club, to now a core member of the squad.
Maguire is the perfect role model for all of the youngsters coming up through the academy and all new signings, who work hard and have a strong mentality, always beat talent. There will always come a tough period, and the Englishman is the best symbol for that.
This season he has been back to his best, and his goal against Liverpool at Anfield has cemented his place as a cult-hero for the club.
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