Maguire and Martinez on-pitch chat speaks volumes about Man Utd plans
Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has revealed that a private chat with Lisandro Martinez has left him convinced that they are both in full agreement on their Red Devils’ performances this season.
The Argentine has impressed during his debut season at Old Trafford following his summer arrival from Ajax, forging an impressive partnership alongside Raphael Varane. Maguire in the meantime has fallen down the pecking order under Erik ten Hag – albeit having briefly re-established himself in the side following an injury to the Frenchman.
And the former Leicester star has now revealed that an on-pitch chat with Martinez indicates that the pair are on the same page when it comes to keeping the ball out of the net.
Talking to United’s official website, he said: “As a centre-back, and a centre-back who likes to defend the box, it’s really – the last 20 minutes [against West Ham ] – are really enjoyable.
“Although they are really tense, it’s something that me and Licha [Martinez] were speaking about, they’re the moments you want to play for.”
Since becoming the world’s most expensive defender, Maguire hasn’t really had the best times as a United player. He has so far failed to get his hands on silverware, something that he is aiming to change sooner rather than later as the Red Devils kick off their latest venture into the Carabao Cup.
“I think all the cup competitions, we want to go as far as we can,” Maguire said. “We had a really poor season last year in the Premier League but also in the cups.
“In the cups, we went out far too early to teams where we feel like we shouldn’t be going out to. So we’ve got to get that right this year. We’ve got to be fully focused for each competition. I think you’ve seen in the Europa League, how focused we are. We had one little setback against Real Sociedad which was – we lost the game through a really soft penalty.
“But we’ve qualified in that and we need to make sure we qualify in the Carabao Cup and go on a long run in all competitions because this club’s built on winning and we need to start winning trophies.”
Usefully, Maguire’s outlook is one shared by Martinez – the defender also convinced that he will be lifting silverware at Old Trafford sooner rather than later.
Speaking with Sky Sports, he said: “For sure, our ambition is to win titles, to put Manchester United where they deserve [to be].
“I think we are in a good way to do it. But we have to keep our feet on the ground, we have to be humble and take it step by step.”
