‘An amazing club to play for’: Harry Maguire keen to extend time at Manchester United

Harry Maguire has hinted at a desire to sign a new contract at Manchester United when his current deal expires next summer, though discussions regarding the defender’s future are yet to occur. United triggered a one-year extension in his terms in January.

“I’m sure over the next few months we’ll have a conversation about where we want to go and if they want to extend,” the 32-year-old said. “I have something in my mind about what I want to do. I don’t want to put it out there [publicly], but it’s an amazing club to play for and you’d be silly if you wanted to jump out of it as soon as you could. I think there were a couple of clubs who enquired or spoke with them [the club] and I think they got a quick response.”

Despite United opening the new season with a 1-0 loss to Arsenal, Maguire believes they are in a better position than when he joined them from Leicester for £80m in August 2019. “We’re in a good place, positive as a club and I feel like the hierarchy has come in and Jason [Wilcox, director of football] and the manager – they’re taking it in the right direction,” he said. “Since I started six years ago to where it is now, it’s in a completely different place in terms of the structure behind the management staff.”

Maguire, who was speaking at the Manchester United Foundation Camp in Stretford, did not start in Sunday’s defeat at Old Trafford. Matthijs de Ligt was preferredas the middle centre-back in Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-3 formation, although he did come on in the 80th minute for Luke Shaw.

View image in fullscreen Harry Maguire during a Manchester United Foundation Camp in Stretford. Photograph: Zohaib Alam

“Me and Matthijs have been playing that central role, but also we can play either side in the back three,” Maguire said. “I’ve proven that. I’ve done that for England and Mattias has done that numerous times for the Netherlands as well. There’s competition for places all over the pitch and that’s healthy in the squad.

“I feel in a good place. It’s been a couple of years now where I feel like I’ve played really well for this club again.”

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Meanwhile, United have announced the appointment of Stephen Torpey as the club’s new academy director. Torpey joins from Brentford, where he led the rebuilding of the club’s youth structure.

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