Manchester United skipper Harry Maguire ‘positive’ for Europa League final return

Manchester United have two league games left in the Premier League this season against Fulham and Wolves, before the eagerly awaited Europa League final in Gdansk against Villarreal.

Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will want his players to secure second place in the Premier League before heading to Poland, and he is optimistic Harry Maguire will be back in time for the final.

Solskjaer said: “Hopefully we can have good news early, but I will give him as long as it takes because he has shown his importance. We’ve known it all along but maybe some people open their eyes more when he’s not playing.

“I certainly felt I became a very good player when I was injured. People suddenly realised what I could do as a sub or what I was as a player.

“Harry has been our leader, and our captain ever since he came in, he’s been more or less ever present so of course he’s a big miss at the moment but, hopefully he’ll speed up the recovery and be ready for the final. I’ll give him as long as he needs until he says yes or no.

“He’s making progress, but we’ve consciously taken the route of not testing him out too early, too quickly, because we don’t want to aggravate something.

“Harry is very – how do you say? – he wants this so much, so he doesn’t want to take any risks either. When I spoke to him this morning, he was quite positive, which is good.

“Naturally, the day after it happened we were all down, but we saw early on or decided we have to focus, have to be positive and think that you’re going to make it until you have to say ‘no’. I’ve always been an optimist, so we’re positive.”

We really don’t want to be going into the final without Maguire, who has played more minutes in the first team than any other player this season. He’s the ultimate mainstay in Solskjaer’s squad and that, I am sure, played a key role in naming him club captain last season.

Hopefully there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

Let us know in the comments section if you were successful in the ballot for the Europa League final. I missed out…

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