By Opta Analyst | Created at 2025-01-15 13:59:15 | Updated at 2025-01-15 16:56:56
2 hours ago
Harry Maguire has produced several eye-catching performances for Manchester United in recent weeks, with the centre-back looking at home in Ruben Amorim’s back three.
There aren’t many footballers in England who’ve put up with what Harry Maguire‘s had to endure over the past few years. There’ll be some who’d argue he’s been very well remunerated as a consolation, but really that’s beside the point.
Maguire’s been ridiculed, relentlessly trolled, reportedly put up for sale, had the captaincy taken off him and even – for a time – pretty much found himself at the bottom of the centre-back pecking order under Erik ten Hag.
Most would understand if at any point he’d caved and decided he wanted out of Manchester United, unwilling to put up with the vitriol, pressure and mental toll, opting to leave for somewhere he’d be appreciated.
But Maguire held firm in his belief that he is good enough, that he does have something to give. His recent form suggests his confidence was well placed, as the 31-year-old is proving a point and earning widespread acclaim.
As much as anything, it speaks to his character that Maguire appears to be enjoying something of a renaissance at Old Trafford, elevating himself to a level many might argue hasn’t been seen from him at United for a long, long time.
He would disagree, insisting at the weekend that he’s been playing consistently well for about 18 months now. Either way, the credit and praise has only started to come his way rather more recently.
Under Ruben Amorim, the past week or so has seen shoots of promise emerge at United. The standard of their performance in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool at Anfield took almost everyone – including the players and coach – by surprise, and then they dug deep to hold Arsenal to a 1-1 draw after extra-time in the FA Cup third round at the Emirates Stadium before beating them on penalties.
Maguire’s performance was a factor in both, but especially at Arsenal. With United down to 10 men for the best part of an hour (including extra-time) after Diogo Dalot’s sending off, they were forced to withstand considerable pressure – and although the Gunners did waste chances they ought to have converted, United defended stoutly.
Central to that was Maguire, imposing himself physically and positioning himself reliably to marshal the penalty box as Arsenal’s increasing desperation led to more and more crosses into the area.
He ended the game having won seven of his eight duels in total, all four of his aerial duels, tallied three more clearances (11) than anyone else and blocked five shots – no one else in a United shirt blocked more than one.
Maguire was a colossus. He looked like he enjoyed every second of his defensive responsibilities and relished the physical confrontations unlike anyone else. So much so that his reaction to Kai Havertz winning the penalty likely raised eyebrows.
Havertz jinked into the area and, when confronted with Maguire, proceeded to flop to the floor under the mere pressure of a hand brushing his torso. The United centre-back was incensed; at first his protests were directed just towards referee Andy Madley, but when it occurred to him that there was no VAR to intervene, the England international turned towards Havertz.
The fury painted across Maguire’s face was intense, his foul-mouthed barks in the Arsenal forward’s direction uttered with such venom and anguish. For someone who could be perceived to be a bit sheepish at times, Maguire’s emotion was actually quite refreshing – and most would agree, perfectly warranted.
Altay Bayindir saved Martin Odegaard’s penalty as justice prevailed. It would’ve been especially cruel on Maguire had United’s exit come down to that spot-kick – he didn’t deserve to be on the losing side, let alone be the one seen as ultimately responsible.
It was a rare break for someone who’s so often seemed to have the world against him. The hope is that this period of consistency he believes he’s been in for a while is his new normal, and it’s difficult to escape the idea that Amorim’s arrival has aided his cause.
Now, this isn’t sudden revisionism of their form under Amorim; two weeks or so ago, the discussion around United was focused on relegation. They had been poor, even dire at times, and the defence wasn’t an exception.
But Maguire’s performances haven’t set off alarm bells like perhaps those of Matthijs de Ligt or Lisandro Martínez on occasion, and Amorim seems to truly value him in a way Ten Hag never did.
“Maguire is perfect when you play with the three defenders,” Amorim told reporters after Maguire did a sterling job on Erling Haaland in the 2-1 derby win over Manchester City last month. “I think in the middle [he] is perfect. Then, the way that the striker that they have [Haaland] with the long balls, you need to be really strong, and so it was perfect for him.”
Being described as “perfect” by the head coach represents a significant comeback from the days he was essentially fourth choice at centre-back, days that weren’t even that long ago.
Of all the United centre-backs, it seems Maguire has adapted best to Amorim’s setup of a back three. And perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised, as he’s done well in a similar system – albeit as the left-sided centre-back – for England. But there’s a sense the team’s new shape suits him particularly well.
While Maguire’s never been as bad as the trolls have often depicted him, there’s no doubt he’s looked vulnerable in periods of his United career.
Playing out from the back in front of a technically limited goalkeeper like David de Gea didn’t do him any favours, causing both of them to suffer. He’s also never been quick, so runners in behind while operating in a high line have been problematic. And his tendency in the past to slow play down has, fairly or not, led to tangible tension in the crowd that could impact his own confidence.
But in a back three with a double pivot in front, there’s plenty of protection and assistance around him. It’s not that he’s so vulnerable he needs protecting for his own good, rather that his role is arguably more streamlined, focused.
For instance, his 62.5 touches per 90 minutes across all competitions for Amorim is fewer than under any other United manager. For Ten Hag, Maguire would have 78 touches per 90 on average, while that figure was 73.2 while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge.
That obviously means he’s spending less time on the ball and attempting fewer passes as a consequence. And on top of that, he’s playing a greater proportion of his passes inside his own half (65.8%) than under any other United manager – given the average start distance of their Premier League passing sequences of 41.7m under Amorim is practically identical to the average under Ten Hag (41.8m) across 2024-25 and 2023-24, this could be seen as further evidence of Maguire working simpler as opposed to it being because the team sits deeper.
In fact, on average, Maguire’s defensive actions since Amorim took over have been four metres further up the pitch than they were under Ten Hag going back to the start of 2023-24.
With United more compact, not only are there additional players around Maguire to share the defensive workload, but their central players are closer together, increasing the number of passing options out from the back. As a result, United’s opponents are averaging 7.7 high turnovers per 90 against them under Amorim in the Premier League, compared to 9.0 going back to the start of last season with the previous regime.
Maguire’s also less likely to become exposed while playing as the central player in a back three than he would be slightly wider in the same formation or even a back four. Similarly, getting isolated against quick players with space to run into is less of a threat.
Of course, one of the major criticisms of Ten Hag’s United was that they were notoriously open and easy to play through. Their susceptibility in defensive transitions – so, occasions when they’ve lost the ball and are transitioning to defence – demonstrated this weakness best.
In the Premier League last season, teams tallied 607 instances of reaching the final third in transition during matches against United (16.0 per game), the most in the top flight. Of those, 199 (5.2 per game) led to shots, the third most in the division.
Under Amorim, United’s opponents are recording 12.3 transitions reaching the final third per game, and 3.1 shots in transition per game – the former is bettered by only six teams in the Premier League and the latter is the third fewest, with only Liverpool (3.0 per game) and Arsenal (2.4 per game) facing fewer shots in transition.
Below, we have maps showing the average positions of United’s starting players in the recent games against Arsenal and Liverpool.
Both show Maguire has significant protection in front of him and how close together many of United’s players were, with the Liverpool game having the caveat that there was a greater focus towards the left in an attempt to keep Mohamed Salah quiet and exploit Trent Alexander-Arnold’s perceived defensive weaknesses.
However, the below graphics from last season depict United’s average positions in the game they conceded the most shots in transition (12 vs Chelsea), and the one they faced most shots overall (34 vs Liverpool).
While the match results are actually quite positive, United’s setups here are indicative of issues that plagued their season. You can quite clearly see how much more open they are, the spaces between players considerably greater. The team’s starting formation is arguably clearer, whereas in the examples under Amorim, there’s greater collaboration and support between defence and midfield.
United’s core is – if we ignore the Casemiro-Christian Eriksen partnership that started against Newcastle – tighter and the team harder to play through. That can only be a good thing for the defence.
The downside to Maguire playing a simpler role is that he’s not as much of a progressive force as he once was. In fact, his 6.0 progressive carries (movements with the ball that progress the ball at least five metres upfield) per 90 under Amorim is less than half the 12.9 he averaged during his first season at United.
But if he continues to produce the kind of dominant defensive displays that he’s now put in against Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal, no one will care about diminished progressiveness. In prioritising defensive responsibilities, we’re seeing just how important Maguire’s physical attributes can be, supporting Amorim’s apparent assertion that the defender’s recent contract extension was a “no-brainer”.
Manchester United are far from fixed, but Maguire is another example of how certain players are beginning to look at home in Amorim’s setup.
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