Ruben Amorim hails Harry Maguire turnaround after Man Utd exit snub | OneFootball

Ruben Amorim has praised Manchester United defender Harry Maguire for overcoming the "difficult moments" he has faced in his career when everything was going "wrong" for the player.

Maguire has taken more than his fair share of criticism ever since an £80m transfer from Leicester City in 2019 made him the world's most expensive defender.

The price tag alone put enormous scrutiny on the England international, even before he was also appointed club captain. But patchy form and a record of injuries in more recent seasons had left Maguire looking like a transfer would be his only escape.

A conviction by a Greek court of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and attempted bribery following an incident while on holiday in August 2020, which resulted in an appeal that is yet to be heard, has also been hanging over Maguire for several years.

Upon being stripped of the United captaincy by Erik ten Hag in 2023, the club agreed to sell Maguire to West Ham United for £30m. But the proposed move fell apart due to the player's desire to remain in Manchester and fight for his place. Almost two years on, he appears to have been vindicated.

Maguire has impressed in successive Europa League games / Clive Brunskill/GettyImages

Europa League heroics against Lyon and Athletic Club in successive rounds, as well as a belief that he could be well suited to the central role in Amorim's back three have created a feeling of optimism around Maguire, who has been described by Bruno Fernandes as a "more confident man" now.

"Sometimes there are moments in our life, and Harry had difficult moments and everything he did was, I don't want to say wrong, but it is that word, wrong. Now everything he does is good for the team, so he has to enjoy it," Amorim told TNT Sports following Thursday night's win.

Maguire was responsible for creating the first goal of the night, finding himself in an attacking position on the right flanks, deceiving his marker with impressive footwork and delivering a cross that was flicked on by Manuel Ugarte, before being turned in by Casemiro.

"It was nice to do a bit of dribbling out there and put in a great cross. We had a lot of bodies in the box so they must have trusted me to get that cross in," the player himself said.