Harry Maguire Supports Driven Marcus Rashford in Manchester United Revival

Harry Maguire has seen the other side of Manchester United. The jeers, the doubts, the sense that the club is quietly nudging you towards the exit. So when he looks at Marcus Rashford now, back in the starting XI and back at Old Trafford after a turbulent spell away, his verdict carries a little more weight than a routine show of dressing-room support.

Rashford, 28, started his first Premier League game for United in 21 months in the 5-2 win over Ipswich at Old Trafford, and he did not ease himself in. He was one of United’s main attacking threats, stretching the game, forcing defenders to turn, reminding everyone that, on song, he changes the temperature of a match.

Not long ago, the idea of him doing that in a United shirt again felt remote. His relationship with former manager Ruben Amorim broke down. He was shipped out on loan to Aston Villa, then to Barcelona, where he impressed enough that the Catalan club were handed a £26m option to buy. Had they triggered it, this chapter might already be over.

They didn’t. The window shuts on Tuesday night and, barring a late twist, Rashford will stay at his boyhood club.

“He’s a great talent,” said Maguire. “He’s always a threat.

“If Marcus wants to be here, wants to work, wants to improve and help the team, of course we’re willing to have him in the team.

“He could still do a lot more and I think he’ll say he can do more but if we keep him fit, we keep him happy, he keeps driven and hungry, he’s a great asset to have.”

That word — “driven” — matters. Rashford has lived under a cloud of criticism for years now, some of it tactical, some of it personal. Questions about his work-rate. His commitment. Even whether he still enjoys the game that once seemed to come so easily to him.

The loans changed something. Under Unai Emery at Villa and Hansi Flick at Barcelona, Rashford found different voices, different demands. He returned to Manchester with sharper edges and, crucially, a head coach in Michael Carrick who knows him, understands his rhythms, and trusts what he can still become.

“You’ve got to remember Marcus has had a wonderful career for this club,” Maguire said.

“But when you play at this club for numerous years, there’s going to be bad seasons, and when the bad seasons come everyone piles on you. That’s part and parcel of playing for this club.

“As a club, we haven’t been perfect from top to bottom. We haven’t been challenging at the top end. So, Marcus has been part of a rough ride for Manchester United.

“When that happens, players get dug out. I’ve been through it.”

Maguire knows the territory. He lost his place, then the captaincy, under Erik ten Hag and looked certain to leave at one stage. He stayed, fought, and has played his way back into prominence. When he says Rashford has come back “really fit and sharp”, there’s a sense of recognition there — of someone else who has decided to fight their corner rather than slip quietly away.

Carrick has already described Rashford as feeling like a new signing. The same manager is trying to pull off a similar restoration job with another key piece of United’s future: Kobbie Mainoo.

The young midfielder, who was repeatedly overlooked by Amorim, found his career jolted again this summer when England boss Thomas Tuchel took him to the World Cup but never used him. Carrick’s task is as much psychological as tactical — to convince Mainoo that his path still runs through the centre of United’s midfield.

Against Ipswich, Mainoo started his first game of the season. United fell behind, the stadium tensed, and the match demanded personality. Gradually, he grew into it.

“I thought he was brilliant,” Maguire said.

“To say he hasn’t had many minutes in pre-season, he was magnificent.

“His work without the ball has improved so much since Michael’s been in. He’s becoming a real monster in there, wins a lot of second balls and a lot of duels.

“The thing is he’s so young. If we want him to play for this club for another 10 years, there’s going to be times where he’s going to go through a patch like I spoke about with Rashy and myself.

“But that’s part and parcel. He’s really level-headed, really composed and has great belief in his ability.

“He’s going to be a magnificent player for this club for many years.”

United’s recent history is littered with false dawns, but there was something symbolic about this 5-2 win. Rashford back in from the cold. Mainoo stepping forward. Maguire anchoring and advocating. Carrick, the former midfielder, trying to knit it all together.

The transfer window will slam shut, the noise will die down, and the real work will begin. The question now is not whether Rashford and Mainoo have the talent. It’s whether this version of Manchester United can finally give them the platform to prove it, week after week, when the spotlight burns hottest.