Michael Carrick has kept his cards close to his chest when asked about Harry Maguire’s future, with the defender’s Manchester United contract set to expire in the summer.
Harry Maguire has had a rollercoaster ride since his record transfer to Manchester United from Leicester City in 2019. Within just six months, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer named him club captain, but that led to the England international unfairly becoming a scapegoat in an underperforming team.
Erik ten Hag later decided it was best to strip Maguire of the captaincy before giving the armband to Bruno Fernandes. However, the former Leicester City centre-back remained a leader in the dressing room and turned his career around by becoming an important player under Ten Hag, Ruben Amorim and now Michael Carrick.
Big questions are being asked about Maguire’s future ahead of the summer. United must decide to offer a new deal or part ways with the experienced defender.
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Harry Maguire celebrates scoring for Manchester United.
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Harry Maguire talking to Michael Carrick at Manchester United training
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Michael Carrick enjoys working with Harry Maguire
Carrick spoke highly of Maguire at his press conference before United take on Bournemouth in the Premier League.
Maguire is set to be partnered by Leny Yoro in a back four, while Carrick waits on Lisandro Martinez to return from a calf injury.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Carrick was asked about the importance of Maguire and whether he had an update on the player’s future at the club.
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Carrick told reporters: “Yeah, there’s obviously talks going on in terms of what the squad’s going to look like come the end of the season and what it looks like after that.
“Harry’s done fantastic for us. I think it’s pretty obvious to say that. He’s had a big impact on what we’ve done. So, we’ll have to see.
“I enjoy working with him, I think he’s been fantastic for this club and we’ll see what comes of that.”
It looks like Carrick, if he has any say in the matter, would keep Maguire at the club for at least another season.
United would be losing too much valuable experience if Casemiro and Maguire were to leave in the same transfer window.
Should Harry Maguire get a contract extension beyond the 2025/26 season?
Harry Maguire celebrating at Anfield
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Four months without Matthijs de Ligt due to injury
Maguire isn’t the only United defender to perform well this season.
There was a point earlier in the season when Matthijs de Ligt was United’s top-performing defender.
Carrick has not yet been able to make use of De Ligt, who has been out injured for almost four months.
When asked if De Ligt will play again this season, Carrick added: “Honestly, it’s difficult to say. I think it’s just because it’s taken that much time. Yeah, I can’t give you any more on it really. It’s one of those things with backs that sometimes you think it’s alright and then all of a sudden it’s not quite right.
“So, we’re just kind of being patient and working through it and we’ll just have to see. We’ll obviously give him time and try to get him back as quick as we can. But it’s really difficult to say. I am not trying to hide anything. Literally, at the moment, we don’t know, so we’ll have to wait and see.”
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