Manchester United defender relishing competition for places after playing key role in Fulham win

Manchester United secured three points in the first game of the season, at home to Fulham, and Harry Maguire played a key role in the heart of defence.

The England international started alongside Lisandro Martinez at centre-back, while Matthijs de Ligt made a substitute appearance to mark his debut in the 1-0 win over Fulham.

Joshua Zirkzee earned the Man of the Match award after his match-winning goal, but the strong overall performance warranted the result we got on the night.

Maguire was an unsung hero against Fulham. He led by example at the back beside Martinez, and did everything asked of him defensively.

In a new interview with club media, Maguire implied that he is relishing the season ahead, plus the competition for places.

“I feel good, I feel fit,” Maguire said as per ManUtd.com. “Physically and mentally, I’m in a good place and yeah, I’m looking forward to a big season.

“There’s so many games this season. I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of changes to come, game to game, in the starting eleven. And when your turn is upon you, you need to take your chance. And yeah, it’s one that we’ll need a big squad for. 

“For myself, I feel fit and ready to go and looking forward to the season.”

Maguire pledged his determination to get back in the Champions League next season. To achieve that, United must finish in the top four or win the Europa League.

The centre-back added that he wants to win more trophies at the club, saying: “I think we don’t really want to set any targets [but] I think this club demands trophies. So we want to win another trophy, of course, and in the Premier League we know there’s large improvements that we need to do and make from what we did last season.

“For sure, we’ve got to improve on last season and let’s see where it goes and takes us.”

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