Harry Maguire: Lyon game pretty much sums up my six years at Manchester United

United trailed 4-2 on 113 minutes as they faced elimination from the Europa League. By full time, Maguire was celebrating scoring the winning goal

Harry Maguire celebrates following Manchester United's 5-4 victory over Lyon in their second leg Europa League quarter-final at the Old Trafford. PA

Harry Maguire scores Manchester United's fifth goal past Lyon goalkeeper Lucas Perri in extra time. Getty Images

Manchester United players celebrate after Harry Maguire's late winner. United's 5-4 win on the night saw them advance 7-6 on aggregate. AFP

Manchester United substitute Kobbie Mainoo scores their fourth goal. Getty Images

Kobbie Mainoo of Manchester United celebrates making it 4-4 against Lyon. Reuters

Bruno Fernandes scores from the penalty spot to make it 4-3 to Lyon. AFP

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes celebrates. AFP

Manchester United defender Diogo Dalot in action with Lyon's Moussa Niakhate. AFP

Manchester United's Diogo Dalot scores their second goal. Reuters

Corentin Tolisso of Lyon is challenged by Manuel Ugarte of Manchester United. Getty Images

Manchester United midfielder Manuel Ugarte celebrates with teammates after scoring the opening goal. AFP

Harry Maguire enjoyed one of his greatest moments in his career as Manchester United came from 4-2 down at home to 10-man Lyon after 113 minutes to win 5-4 (and 7-6 on aggregate) at the final whistle.

United advanced to the Europa League semi-finals to take on Athletic Club from Bilbao, but Maguire’s influence in the competition wasn’t only felt on Thursday. The 32-year-old had equalised for United at Porto in the first Europa League game of the season after 91 minutes in October and also got the winner in a 3-2 win against Ipswich Town in February. But neither moment could compare with Thursday as he scored United’s fifth and winning goal 121 minutes after the game started.

“I've had some amazing moments at this club. Been here six years now and I've had some great times – some bad times as well,” said Maguire after the game.

“I think that game pretty much summed up my time at this club, to be honest. It was an incredible feeling to score that winner in such an important game, in a game that was full of emotion and the strangest, maddest game I’ve ever played in or witnessed, to be honest. I think the lads showed great spirit and fight in the end to dig in and turn it around.”

The win saved Manchester United’s season.

“It’s important we do as well as we can in this competition,” said Maguire. “Listen, we’re only in the semi-final, we’re playing Athletic Bilbao. I don’t know if people are saying they’re the favourites to win the competition, but we’ll go into it with a great belief to win the game. But we’re only in the semi-final, so we don’t want to get carried away in terms of winning the competition. But, of course, moments like this are something that the fans can go home with a great memory of Old Trafford.

"This season it’s been so difficult for everyone involved, all the fans, all the players, the staff. It’s just been nowhere near good enough and when you get moments like that, and memories you create like that, I think it’s so important for the fans to go home with a smile on their faces.”

Did Maguire feel that he owed the fans that after such a poor season?

“I don’t know how I would have felt if I had come here and been speaking to you after a 4-2 defeat – it's not even worth trying to think about that, to be honest,” he said.

“In the game we played well. The second half, it was comfortable, they had a lot of possession, but they didn’t create chances, then they scored the first goal out of nothing. It was pinball in our box and they managed to put it in and I think with the season that we've had at Old Trafford especially, I think we started maybe playing a little anxiously, a little bit nervously, and I think that’s understandable.

"But we needed to see out those minutes and be solid, so to end up at 2-2 straight away it was difficult to take, and then in extra time we obviously can’t get done on two counterattacks like that when we’re playing against 10 men. It’s criminal really. But we showed great spirit at that moment, because then, I don’t know how everyone else felt, but I’m sure they [the fans] felt disappointed and maybe felt like we’d let everyone down.

The National asked Maguire how he felt when the score was 4-2 to Lyon with seven minutes of extra time remaining. Did he think United had lost the game?

“I still thought there was a lot of time on the clock. I think it was the 109th minute when they scored the fourth. I think they thought they’d won it, the way they were celebrating," Maguire said. "That gave us more of an incentive to turn the game around.

"I think the worst feeling was that we felt we’d thrown it away, rather than lost the game at that moment, and how we managed to get ourselves into that situation, because even going into extra time at 2-2, the momentum was back with us with the sending off, we shouldn't end up in that situation.

"We've got to do far better than that if we want to win this competition. We can’t be doing that and be leaving it to turn it around in that situation. But it does show great spirit, fight, togetherness, and that's the one thing this group of lads is doing – they’re giving everything. Sometimes I think this year it's not been good enough and rightly so, it hasn’t, but they are giving everything.”

Maguire has scored key goals when United’s forwards are struggling to score. He was asked, in jest, if there’s a future for him as a striker.

“Listen, you guys can see that we're probably short on attackers,” he said. “The squad. tonight, we’ve got two attackers in the squad in Garners [Alejandro Garnacho] and Rasmus [Hojlund] and they give everything out there. I think Garners was on his last legs and he was up and down the pitch numerous times.

"We are short on attackers, we lost Josh [Zirkzee], so if he [head coach Ruben Amorim] asks me to go up there, I’m willing to go up there. I do see myself as a threat and I do feel like I can score a goal up there. Speaking of Leny [Yoro], as well, I think he was brilliant again. I think over the two ties, I’d say he's been our best player, so congratulations to Leny.”