Look at the list of his goals for our club. Chelsea away. Leeds away. A winner at Anfield earlier in this season. A last-minute equaliser in Porto. An extra-time clincher at Norwich in the FA Cup.
Was it any coincidence that when United were down 4-2 to Lyon, in that famous Europa League second leg, that the players that did most to rescue United were Maguire and his fellow stalwarts Casemiro and Fernandes? (And let’s not forget Academy graduate Kobbie Mainoo either, who, at 20, has already formed a habit of producing when the tension levels are raised to ‘unbearable’.)
Even in the debacle at Grimsby earlier in the season, Maguire never played like he was affected by the threat of humiliation that seemed to cast such a spell over United’s collective performance. As always, he headed straight for the centre of the battle, heading home our late equaliser in a penalty-area stramash. Humiliation did follow in the penalty shootout that followed, but Maguire had given it everything.
All of those qualities stem from his character; from his understanding of what football means, particularly here in the north of England. His family members are in attendance at every game he plays, and he competes like that’s at the forefront of his mind. He wants to do them proud and, by extension, the fans that surround them in the stands.
Of course, Maguire has been a fan too. A real fan. Not just someone who likes football because they are good at it. But a proper, paying match-goer, who has followed England at international tournaments and stood on the terraces at Bramall Lane. Not all elite footballers play with that sense of wider duty to those outside the bubble, but for Maguire it is fundamental.