Maguire and Onana prove Ten Hag RIGHT with crucial Champions League involvements
Cameron Smith
- 24 Oct 2023 22:11 BST
- 4 min read
Harry Maguire and Andre Onana proved their doubters wrong with match-winning involvements in Manchester United’s narrow 1-0 Champions League victory against Copenhagen on Tuesday night.
Maguire netted the only goal of the game in the 72nd minute, while Onana stepped up big time with a stoppage time penalty save after Scott McTominay had been penalised for a late foul inside the 18-yard box.
After Maguire opened the scoring for Erik ten Hag’s side, it looked as though Man Utd were set to earn their first three points of the 2023-24 Champions League group stages before McTominay conceded a penalty in the dying embers of the match.
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Jordan Larsson, son of Henrik, stepped up but saw his spot kick expertly saved by Onana, who dived to his left and parried the ball away from danger before the final whistle signalled Man Utd’s first win of this season’s Champions League.
Both Onana and Maguire have been much maligned in recent times, with the latter’s critics dating back over a year, while the former has experienced a torrid time since moving to Old Trafford in the summer.
However, it was a night of redemption for the pair as Ten Hag’s faith in both players paid off massively.
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Man Utd have won 94% of games where Harry Maguire has started since October 2022 🐐 pic.twitter.com/C6JIEnC5ZA
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) October 24, 2023
Maguire nets first goal of the season
Maguire was stripped of the Man Utd captaincy this summer, with Erik ten Hag promoting Bruno Fernandes to the role of club captain in place of the former Leicester City defender.
That decision came after Maguire’s struggles last season, with Ten Hag favouring Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane at the heart of Man Utd’s defence.
Several error-riddled games - including a complete mix-up with David de Gea against Sevilla in the Europa League - saw Maguire’s reputation fall drastically and his place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad came into question.
However, the 30-year-old has come back into the Man Utd side in recent weeks - in part due to injury problems at Old Trafford - and his form has been immense.
Man Utd have now won 16 of their last 17 matches in which Maguire has started (dating back to October 2022), while their win rate without him is far lower (22 wins in 42 matches in that time).
He may have his critics, but Maguire is still key for Man Utd and it was his goal - courtesy of a bullet header - that sealed the Red Devils’ a crucial three points in their bid to seal qualification for the Champions League last-16.
