SILENCE IS GOLDEN
MAGUIRE: I WAS STUCK IN REVERSE McTominay says stars can’t talk about pain of last season and admits Ten Hag’s brutal pre-season regime is one of toughest ever
BY DAVID McDONNELL
HARRY MAGUIRE has opened up on last season’s nightmare with Manchester United and admitted it was a backward step in his career.
United captain Maguire suffered a dramatic loss of form and confidence as the club finished in sixth place in the table, with their worst points total of the Premier League era.
Maguire bore the brunt of the criticism aimed at the team and, speaking on United’s pre-season tour of Australia, admitted he fell well short of the standard expected.
But the 29-year-old (above) said United players are ready to bounce back under new boss Erik ten Hag (below) and get the club back to challenging for major trophies.
“Last year was disappointing,” said Maguire. “As an individual, I didn’t play well and, as a team, we certainly didn’t play well.
“But a good career can last 10 to 15 years and you’re never going to have every year where it’s plain sailing and you don’t have any difficulties. You’re going to have to fight, you’re going to have setbacks and last year was certainly a setback for myself on my career path.
“But it’s behind us now, we look forward to the future and getting this club back to winning trophies, which is what it’s all about.”
Maguire said Ten Hag expects a lot of his players, but admitted the extra demands were necessary if they are to bridge the gap to rivals like Manchester City and Liverpool.
“It’s been tough,” added Maguire. “The running has been hard, but we’re really looking forward to the new season.
“Everyone – the players, the club – knew last year was nowhere near good enough, but it’s a fresh start and we’ve got a big season ahead.
“We’re working towards being ready for that first
Premier League game.”
MANCHESTER UNITED’S players still cannot bring themselves to talk about their worst season in Premier League history.
They ended last season in sixth place with 58 points, their worst total of the Premier League era, as the fallen giants hit their lowest point since Sir Alex Ferguson retired.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked and interim boss Ralf Rangnick (below) won just 11 of his 28 games in charge, as United became a laughing stock in world football.
Erik ten Hag has been brought in to resurrect United, with Scott McTominay admitting last season’s nadir is still too painful for the players to discuss.
But the midfielder – speaking on the pre-season tour of Australia where he scored the opener in the 4-1 win against Melbourne Victory on Friday – said United’s players must use last season’s misery as motivation to ensure they never find themselves at such a low ebb again.
“It’s difficult to speak about last year,” said McTominay.
“Obviously, it touched a nerve in terms of when we speak about it again as a group. It’s not nice.
“But that’s got to be the motivation now – to put everything back to normal
and go for trophies again under the new boss – because I know that this squad is more than capable of doing that.” McTominay, 25, one of the straightest talkers at United, acknowledged the criticism the players received last season and said they must be big
enough to take it – or find a different club. “You’re playing for Manchester United, you’re going to get criticised,” said the Scot.
“If you think you’re going to come and play for United and you’re not going to get a little bit of criticism here and there, then you’re in the wrong job, because that’s just not how it works at this club.
“Maybe you need to have a little look in the mirror because that’s just part and parcel of the game.
“Everyone gets criticised, that’s the world we live in – social-media criticism.
“You only see how much you want to see it. That’s part and parcel of it as well.”
Ten Hag has been working United’s players hard in pre-season, physically and mentally, with double training sessions and tactical meetings as he tries to implement his philosophy.
McTominay admitted it has been one of the toughest pre-seasons he has endured, but also insisted that United’s players must follow Ten Hag’s strict approach if they are to have any chance of getting back to the top.
“We’ve had some tough pre-seasons, but this is up there with one of the most difficult ones,” added McTominay.
“But it’s accumulation, it’s getting miles in the legs and it’s getting everybody accustomed to the volume of work that we’re wanting to do.
“When you’ve got a new manager, there’s a lot of new ideas and different things that he wants you to work on as a group, and individually as well, which is so important.
“It’s important that we keep pushing in the right direction to achieve what we want to achieve. There’s a lot of different ideas and a lot of variations.
“He’s very clear in meetings what he wants us to do and how he wants us to approach the games as well.
“Obviously, for us, it’s important that you take that message on board.
“We’ve got to come together as a team and show everything that he’s been working on the training pitch in the games.
“The manager’s standards are high, so you’ve got to get used to that, which is maybe a little bit foreign for some of the players.
“They’ve got to make sure that everything that they do on and off the pitch is to the best of their ability.
“I didn’t really know what to expect, coming back in, but I’m certainly pleased with what I’ve seen and I’m excited to see where it leads us in the future.”
United’s pre-season tour will see them face fellow Premier League side Crystal Palace in Melbourne on Tuesday, before flying on to Perth, where they will take on Aston Villa, prior to the trip home.