Harry Maguire was one of Manchester United’s best performers in his team’s 1-0 win at Real Betis in the hugely atmospheric Estadio Benito Villamarin on Thursday.
It came on the day he made Gareth Southgate’s England squad again for the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Italy and Ukraine.
Thursday's Europa League last-16 second leg was the sixth game Maguire has started for United since the World Cup finals, where he played well for England. United have won all six, but while he is club captain, Maguire isn’t the first-choice starter that he was in his first four seasons at Old Trafford.
The National spoke to him after the game in Seville.
How was tonight’s game?
It was an important one. We performed well at Old Trafford, especially in the second half. Betis are a good team, they’re fifth in La Liga, but the second half at Old Trafford was electric.
Tonight, we knew how important the first goal would be and how the first 20 minutes of the game were so important. Away from home in Europe is totally different from a home tie and we spoke about that in the dressing room. The manager has got a lot of European experience and knew exactly what he was talking about and we have a lot of players with European experience. That showed.
Betis came at us with intensity and a high tempo for those first 20 minutes but we matched them and after that I felt we controlled the game. That’s not easy to do here. It’s a great, loud stadium. I played here with England when we got that famous victory against Spain. Betis are a good club with a good team. They’re pushing to play in the Champions League next season, yet we went through the tie comfortably 5-1 on aggregate and I felt we controlled both games.
Betis v United ratings
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REAL BETIS RATINGS: Rui Silva – 6 Preferred to Claudio Bravo after the Chilean’s shaky first leg performance. Showed solid command and handling without facing a first-half shot on target, but made decent one-on-one saves from Rashford and Sabitzer in the second half. Exposed and beaten from distance by the ferocity of the England star’s winner. AFP -
Youssouf Sabaly – 7 Pushed forward down the right as Betis looked to make early inroads into the aggregate deficit. Front-foot defending from the off, though that did leave gaps which United failed to exploit, but overall showed himself to be a fruitful attacking outlet and never stopped grafting. AP -
German Pezzella – 6 Had to step up without the injured Luis Felipe alongside him and promptly did so, imposing himself throughout and making one hugely enjoyable first-half challenge on Malacia. Giddiness got the better of him when needlessly tangling with Rashford and he struggled to deal with United’s growing attacking presence. AP -
Edgar Gonzalez – 5 Looked ring-rusty at times on his return in place of Luiz Felipe, not least with a slow reaction to Pellistri’s shot against the post in first-half injury-time. Uncomfortable in the face of United’s pacey counter-attacks as the visitors steadily took control of the game. AFP -
Abner Vinicius – 5 Went up against Pellistri after an enjoyable duel with Antony at Old Trafford, but was unable to relish the new challenge for long as he picked up a groin injury which curtailed his involvement before the half-hour. PA -
William Carvalho – 6 The standard tidy contribution from the ever-consistent Portuguese midfielder. A combative, quick-thinking display littered with a spate of well-timed nicks and interceptions. Provided the platform for Betis to foster hope of an unlikely comeback in the first half – though arguably a little slow to close down Rashford for the goal. Getty -
Guido Rodriguez – 6 Quietly industrious as ever, invariably occupying the right positions at the right times. Caught Fernandes with one follow-through which went unchecked and made sure United were unable to build attacking rhythm in the first half, but found himself increasingly overrun as ten Hag’s side took charge. PA -
Aitor Ruibal – 5 A change to the first leg, coming in for Luiz Henrique, and was inconsistent in his involvement. Showed some neat touches but misjudged his distribution more than once, most notably overhitting a cross from a very promising position shortly before half-time, and an unsurprising withdrawal early in the second half. Reuters -
Joaquin – 6 The ageless Betis legend was more involved in the second leg, starting both halves in lively form. Took just 10 minutes to curl a long-ranger against the outside of the United post and a few seconds after the interval to blaze over. The pace of the game made it difficult for him to sustain involvement and he was withdrawn before the hour. AFP -
Juanmi – 6 Failed to sparkle at Old Trafford but was in the thick of the action this time, rolling a glorious early chance past the upright and succumbing to De Gea in a one-on-one just after the half-hour. Lively and could have been a hero with better finishing, but was hooked after Rashford struck. Reuters -
Ayoze Perez – 6 Led the line again, just as he did at Old Trafford, but United had a better handle on him this time. Intelligent link-play early on, releasing Juanmi for the hosts’ first real chance, but faded in influence in the first period. Had a sharp header well saved by De Gea before making way. AFP -
SUBS: Juan Miranda (Abner Vinicius, 26) – 4 Handed an unexpectedly early involvement when Abner Vinicius pulled up, and struggled to get to grips with the lively Pellistri. AP -
Sergio Canales (Joaquin, 59) - 4 Given half-an-hour to produce a miraculous turnaround, but never grew into the game and had no say in events. AP -
Borja Iglesias (Aitor Ruibal, 59) - 4 Will wonder if he could have done more if trusted to start, but had little impact during his half-hour in a deflated Betis side. Couldn’t find a way past Maguire. AFP -
Andres Guardado (Guido Rodriguez, 66) - 5 A tidy but uneventful cameo with the outcome already long-assured. EPA -
MANCHESTER UNITED RATINGS: David de Gea - 7 Comfortable in his homeland. Weak ball towards Wan-Bissaka raised the crowd after a minute. Super 10th minute save from Juanmi and again from the striker on 31. Booed for taking his time. EPA -
Aaron Wan-Bissaka - 6 His fortunes are far brighter than his last visit to Betis in December with United. Defended, got forward, final ball sometimes questionable. Getty -
Harry Maguire - 7 Played well. Headed a seventh minute corner towards Weghorst and solid in soaking up the Betis attacks in his first European game since September. AFP -
Lisandro Martinez - 7 Cut out a 13th minute Betis attack as the loud crowd sang ‘Yes we can!’ Positioned well to stop another green attack on 37 and performed well alongside Maguire. AFP -
Tyrell Malacia - 6 Pushed high left and crossed after 25, but twice dribbled back towards De Gea in the first half as he had no options. Conceded a free-kick in a dangerous position on 40. Better in the second half. AP -
Casemiro - 7 Back against the team he played his last Real Madrid league game against, he was flipped in a challenge by Joaquin in the first half, then set up Rashford for the goal. PA -
Fred - 7 Ball into Rashford on 20 and got into advanced positions. Excellent interception on 38 and brought off after an hour – so he’ll start v Fulham on Sunday in the FA Cup. Reuters -
Facundo Pellistri - 7 Neat and controlled in the first half. Shot towards goal on 45, set up a 52nd minute attack despite being chased down by Beticos. Booked, harshly. Sent Sancho clear on 80. Impressive and got better. Deservedly praised by his manager. AFP -
Bruno Fernandes - 7 Fiery. Involved as ever, he set up Rashford on 22. Tried long balls into the box. Playing so much football but doesn’t look fatigued with it. AFP -
Marcus Rashford - 7 Super goal from distance into the bottom corner with the outside of his right foot – and that was his job done. Before that, it was a mixed bag. Overhit an early pass, directed a 20th minute Fred cross towards goal, twice muscled off the ball by Carvalho. Spun past Ruibal and had two excellent chances to score, the first well saved, the second sliced over. AP -
Wout Weghorst - 5 Focal point and missed with a ball which struck the post just before half time. Weak shot on target after 69 and still a striker who doesn’t score enough. AP -
SUBS: Jadon Sancho - 6 On for Rashford on 60. Through with only the goalkeeper to beat on 70 and Elanga clear to his left. He took a shot which was saved, but the linesman flagged for offside. Getty -
Marcel Sabitzer - 5 On for Fred after 60. Combative. Getty -
Anthony Elanga - 5 On for Fernandes on 68, replacing the man who was a booking away from missing the quarter finals. Limited impact. AP -
Victor Lindelof - 6 On for Martinez after 74 after Ten Hag brought off some of the players he’s used most. Reuters -
Diogo Dalot - N/R On for Wan Bissaka after 74. Got into space to make a cross. PA
How do you see the Europa League this season?
We’re in it to win it. If you look at the last 5-10 years, the competition has really picked up. It’s not the competition we want to be in as a club, we want to be in the Champions League, but it’s a great competition. There’s a lot of strong teams in it – we’ve played some of them this season and I remember losing that final against Villarreal.
How do you think you did tonight?
I’m happy. We won the game and kept a clean sheet. It was my first start in a couple of weeks but I’ve still had six starts since the World Cup. I want to help the team on and off the field. My job is to make sure this club is successful. Whether I’m playing or not, I have a big responsibility. As a footballer I’m disappointed when I’m not playing but all I can do is work and train as hard as I can.
Is six starts in 10 weeks enough for you?
You’ve known me since I’ve joined this club and know I always want to be on that pitch and leading the team out. I want to strive to play every game for this club, but I also understand that the lads playing are playing well, really well. They’re top-quality centre backs who are in good form. And that’s football. We also know that things can change quickly in football.
We have four international centre-backs at this club – and for good international sides. That’s a lot of competition and I believe that any four of us could play week in week out at a top Premier League club. Everyone is pushing each other and that’s good for Manchester United.
Is this the best Manchester United side you’ve been involved with?
I’d probably say so. We had some very good moments under Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer]. We got to semi-finals, we reached the Europa final and lost on penalties, we finished second in the Premier League.
This manager [Erik ten Hag] has really set a style and a philosophy. I buy into it. If you don’t you get moved on. It’s demanding.
In what way?
He demands high standards, perfection while understanding that things can never be perfect. He tells you if things are wrong, he’s authoritative and he’s the leader of the club. The lads are buying into it and you can see that by the amount of games we’ve won this year. There has been some downs – as there always are – and we’re nowhere near where we want to be. Manchester United want to be challenging for the league with lot more points than we’ve got now, but if you look at where we were last season we’re making good progress.
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Manchester United's Marcus Rashford celebrates scoring in the 1-0 Europa League round of 16 second leg win against Real Betis at the Benito Villamarin Stadium, Seville, on March 16, 2023. AP -
Marcus Rashford celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates. Reuters -
United's Marcus Rashford celebrates scoring. PA -
United manager Erik ten Hag with Marcus Rashford after he was substituted. Reuters -
Betis' Youssouf Sabaly jumps for a header next to Rashford. AP -
United midfielder Bruno Fernandes (L) tries to take the ball off Real Betis defender Youssouf Sabaly. AFP -
Striker Wout Weghorst reacts after missing an opportunity to score. AP -
United defender Harry Maguire in action. AFP -
United's Carlos Casemiro leaps for a header. EPA
Have you thought about your future?
No. There’s a game every three days and I’m training as hard as I can. I’m in a good place mentally and physically, I feel good. The training sessions are really intense, especially the day after a game. There will be lads unhappy because they’ve not played or sat on the bench. That’s part of football, but it adds more competition and high-quality training where the lads are covering similar distances to what they do in a game. That’s a credit to the players and the coaching staff here putting on those sessions.
What will success look like for Manchester United this season?
We want to win every game in the Premier League and see where it takes us, but you also have to be a realist and understand our position. We need to get top four and we’re in a strong position to do so. We don’t settle for that, we should push for the team above us in the league, whoever that is. This club needs to win trophies. We’ve won one and our minimum aim should be to win another trophy this season.
