Harry Maguire’s transformation into Manchester United’s last action hero has made him the poster boy for footballers who never give up. United’s sensational extra-time win against Lyon on Thursday night was one of the most thunderous, unbelievable sporting dramas I have ever witnessed, one of the all-time great comebacks.
And I am so pleased that it fell to Maguire to land the decisive blow because he has been through so much negativity in the last couple of years at Old Trafford – but he has always summoned the strength of character to come out fighting and prove his worth.
He’s had the captaincy taken off him, been dropped, lost his England place and had fans or pundits questioning whether he could fit into Ruben Amorim’s system. But in years to come, fans will rank his winner against Lyon up there with the greatest moments of bedlam.
It could be Amorim’s turning point, his Mark Robins moment where Robins allegedly saved Sir Alex Ferguson’s job with the winner in an FA Cup tie at Nottingham Forest in 1990. Or the Steve Bruce headers against Sheffield Wednesday in 1993, a dramatic late turnaround which famously brought Fergie’s assistant Brian Kidd to his knees on the pitch.
Some fans are even comparing it with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s winner in the Nou Camp to seal the Treble in 1999.
United’s comeback has certainly saved United’s season, and you wonder if it has also saved Amorim from taking that long walk to the boardroom.
To an extent, I can empathise with Maguire’s predicament when he was deemed surplus to requirements at Old Trafford and United reportedly accepted a £30million bid for him from West Ham.
I was once dropped at Derby, made to train with the youngsters and it was the lowest ebb of my playing career. I felt worthless and my mental health suffered. Playing means more to a footballer than anything, and when it’s taken away the hardest thing is to maintain your self-belief and fight through it.
There’s an embarrassment about being surplus to requirements – you feel as though people are looking at you in the dressing room, or when you’re out with the family you are looking out for the sideways glances from people thinking, “He’s a failure.”
I have so much admiration for Maguire after the way he has come through all the lows at United because he’s had an unbelievable career. When he looks back, he might reflect on the last coupe of years and wonder, “How on earth did I get through that?”
Amorim must be thinking much the same thing after United somehow found a way back from being 4-2 down in extra time with just six minutes to go. Now, to make the drama worth every racing heartbeat, they have to go on and win the Europa League.
You can talk about the epic tension of Rory McIlroy’s final round at the Masters, you can talk about Jonny Wilkinson’s drop goal to win the rugby World Cup, you can talk about Andy Murray winning Wimbledon. But there is nothing on earth to compare with the raw emotion, the explosion of joy, that I was lucky enough to witness at Old Trafford on Thursday night.
To be honest, I’m not sure how Amorim pulled off that miracle with Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo up front. And maybe the United manager doesn’t know how it happened, either.
But if they go on to win the Europa League, amid the ruins of a dreadful Premier League season, the resurrection of Harry Maguire will go down as a turning point in the club’s history.
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