Harry Maguire - Player Profile | Statistics, Playing Style, Career Analysis

Harry Maguire joined Manchester United for a world-record move of £80m despite all the criticism, the United skipper has been instrumental in Manchester United's progress from chasing the top four to becoming the title contenders this season.

But do you know how he started? Let's have a look.

How it Began:

Harry Maguire started from the youth football system at Sheffield United and made it to the first team, making his debut as a half-time substitute and then being rewarded with the Man of the Match award with a victory against Cardiff City in 2011.

Managing only four appearances, Maguire couldn't help his side to avoid relegation. A good League One season earned him a contract with the Blades until 2015, ending the season with both "Player of the Year" and "Young Player of the Year" at Bramall Lane.

In June 2014, Maguire had opportunities to move to Hull City or Wolves, he was also offered an improved contract by Sheffield United but just after a month, the defender got committed to Hull City for 2.5m.

After representing the club only six times across all competitions, Harry Maguire joined Wigan Athletic on loan in February.

In the 2016-17 season, Maguire was incorporated as a first-team regular, and he then went on to captain his side in April 2017, where he also scored his first Premier League goal. 

Even though Hull City ended up relegating, Harry Maguire was voted as the club's Payer of the Year by both the fans and the players.

After a couple of months, Harry Maguire joined Leicester City for 12m that could go up to 17m with add-ons. Maguire's fitness was visible as he appeared in every game for the Foxes in the 2017-18 season, winning the player of the season as well as players' player of the season at the club's end of season awards.

Once Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was made the Manchester United permanent boss, the rebuilding program commenced, and Maguire was one of the initial targets that the club had from a season ago.

After a year of speculation, Manchester United acquired the services of Harry Maguire for 80m, making him the world's most expensive defender after he surpassed the 75m paid for the Liverpool signing Virgil Van Dijk.

When the January transfer window opened in that very season, several Manchester United players were off-loaded, including Ashley Young who was the club captain then.

With his departure, Ole handed the captaincy responsibilities to Harry Maguire, and just after nine days, the Englishman opened his account for his new club with a FA Cup banger against Tranmere Rovers.

Harry Maguire: Style of Play

Harry Maguire is not the quickest on the field but his positioning and physicality are things that set him apart from a lot of other central defenders. 

He was a crucial part of Manchester United's successful defensive achievements as the Red Devils were of the five clubs with the most number of clean sheets across all competitions in Europe's top five leagues.

Harry Maguire was criticized heavily in the initial stages of his Manchester United career, but the skipper has only proven his doubters wrong. Maguire is also a goal threat when it comes to set-pieces, and his dominance in aerial duels is just surreal.

When compared to Liverpool's Virgil Van Dijk who was termed as 'world-class' since the time he's joined the Reds, Maguire only fell short by four goals, but when aspects like tackles, dribbles, interceptions, headed clearances are concerned, the Manchester United defender came on top.

Not to forget that it was Maguire's first season with United, while Van Dijk's third. However, certain personal incidences in his life have led to his scrutiny more.

There is no doubt that Harry Maguire has the potential to become one of the best, and with Manchester United getting better day by day, it will be interesting to see how he does.