Maguire moved to the Red Devils for £80 million back in 2019 and, despite being selected the captain less than a year later, has subsequently divided opinion. He was promptly benched this season by newly appointed United boss Erik ten Hag in favor of Raphael Varane and summer acquisition Lisandro Martinez.
The center-back, though, has been one of England's most dependable players under Gareth Southgate at the international level, contributing significantly to the Three Lions' successful tournament campaigns over the previous five years.
In the 2-1 victory against Italy on Thursday in Euro 2024 qualifying, Maguire started for England. While he didn't bask in glory for the Azzurri's goal, he stayed strong late to assist the team eke out the victory.
After the game, Maguire was questioned by the media on his feelings of being "fully appreciated."
Indeed, he said, "I do, for England. "Clearly, the club had a challenging season last year, but hey, listen, I've shown myself to Gareth, who works with a variety of center backs. He may choose from any of the English center backs in the nation, and I have played whenever I have been available.
"If you ask the other guys on the team, I'm sure they can tell you what I bring to the table. I shouldn't have to prove myself at this level since I'm 30 years old. I own more than 50 caps. I am the top-scoring defender for England.
"Even though I've played nearly 200 times for Manchester United and have been the club's captain for three years, I do realize that being the captain of Manchester United subjected to the maximum amount of scrutiny. My performance at the club level last season wasn't good enough; everyone else at the club level, not just myself, struggled. Everyone else had difficulty.
Maguire admits that he hasn't always performed at his peak level while donning a United jersey.
During their terrible 2021/22 season, when they scored the fewest points ever in the Premier League era, he was an obvious target for blame.
But, Maguire has also been unable to advance and, if anything, has gone backwards many steps after what had been a promising first half of 2021, when he emerged as one of the league's top center-backs and played bravely despite being ill during England's march to the Euro 2020 final.
His apparent desire to silence critics—most notably, by scoring for England and celebrating by jamming his fingers in his ears—hasn't helped his cause.
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