HARRY MAGUIRE has hinted at a desire to sign a new contract at Manchester United, saying it would be “silly” to leave when his current deal expires next summer.
Boss Ruben Amorim locked down the England defender until 2026 after triggering a one-year contract extension to his £190,000-per- week deal in January.
GettyHarry Maguire seems keen to stay at Man Utd as long as he is wanted[/caption]
GettyIn an extraordinary show of confidence, Maguire was named to Ruben Amorim’s six-man leadership group with Bruno Fernandes[/caption]
Maguire visited a multi-sports holiday camp at Stretford Sports Village
Maguire, 32, came close to leaving Old Trafford in 2023 after he was stripped of the captaincy by Erik ten Hag, with United accepting a £30million bid from West Ham two years ago.
But, he was praised for digging deep and fighting for his place under Ten Hag before becoming a key figure in Amorim’s set-up, with United batting away offers from five different clubs this summer.
And Maguire, who joined for a record-fee of £80m for a defender from Leicester City in 2019, hinted at hoping for a future beyond the expiry of his deal next June.
The centre-back opened up at Manchester United Foundation’s holiday camp at a school in Stretford on Wednesday.
Maguire said: “I’m sure over the next few months they’ll sit down and we’ll have a conversation about where we want to go and if they want to extend, but the transfer window will open again in January.
“I have something in my mind about what I want to do and what I want to be.
“I don’t want to put it out there to everybody but it’s an amazing club to play for and you’d be silly if you wanted to jump out of it as soon as you could.”
Maguire fancies emulating the likes of Denis Irwin, Gary Pallister, Steve Bruce and Bryan Robson, who are all fondly regarded as key United mainstays by the club’s support.
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No talks have yet taken place over extending his contract, but the message to interested parties is believed that United are keen to keep him.
Maguire was named as part of Amorim’s six-man leadership group, but got the last 20 minutes of United’s 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in their season opener at home on Sunday.
Despite feeling “disappointed” with the final score, Maguire hailed the new feel-good factor at Old Trafford thanks to the new arrivals.
The 64-capped England star said: “It’s a great feeling in the dressing room. It was nice, if I’m being honest, to just feel like it was a bit of a fresh start after last season.
“Last season was so tough to play in there. The situation that we were in, February, March time, we’ve got nothing to play for. It was really tough.
“Apart from the Europa League, everyone was focusing on that. But then when you get beat in the Premier League, it still piles down on you.
“So, this season you’re going to see a lot more competition from us in the Premier League.”
“I’m sure the likes of David Beckham and Wayne Rooney went through abuse
Harry Maguire
As part of the six-man committee with Tom Heaton, Lisandro Martinez, Diogo Dalot, Noussair Mazraoui, Maguire says he’s focused on helping skipper Bruno Fernandes keep the squad in line and drive up standards.
Maguire, who has been a target for trolls for years, has told his teammates to be “mentally strong” and ignore social media abuse after their disappointing 15th-place finish last term.
On last season’s turmoil, Maguire said: “I’m sure they’d have been getting slaughtered left, right and centre, if I’m being honest.
“I hope the players stay away and they learn that they don’t need to be told by other people whether they’re doing right or wrong.
“I hope they don’t go on and read the comments when they’ve made a mistake or made a bad game or read the direct messages on Instagram.
“A lot of the social media laughing and joking and the memes and things like that obviously from rival fans.
“I’ve been mentally strong throughout it all but I’m only speaking on advice I’m giving these younger lads that they are going to go through sticky times at this club no matter how good it is.
“I’m sure the likes of David Beckham and Wayne Rooney went through and they are world-class players.
“Wayne’s one of the best players to play for England and this club and he had so much abuse. So, you’re going to get it.”
Maguire helped out at a camp aimed at children aged between 8-14 years in areas of social deprivation and low-income households
Maguire’s revival at United has been nothing short of extraordinary, with club icon Rio Ferdinand recently describing it as though the player had “come back from the dead.”
Ferdinand revealed he’d spoken to Maguire about his struggles at Old Trafford.
He said: “We had the tough questions like that, what’s it like you having criticism? And someone who risen from the dead almost, shown character.
“He was down and out, but he’s come back. So to show that character and resilience, it was nice to just get beneath the skin and talk with him about it.”
