Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has compared Harry Maguire with Virgil van Dijk following his latest performance for Manchester United.
Liverpool’s bitter rivals crashed out of the Champions League on Wednesday after a 1-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid - and Maguire was substituted late on by Ralf Rangnick as his side failed to find an equaliser at Old Trafford. It was another low point in what has been a tumultuous season so far for the United captain.
Carragher described the England international as currently going through “the worst moment in his career”. And the Anfield legend admitted that the £80m the Red Devils paid for the 29-year-old means he comes under intense criticism, especially when compared with Liverpool's similarly high-profile move for Van Dijk.
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“He’s going through the worst moment in his career,” Carragher told CBS Sports, after United’s defeat to Atletico. “I can picture it now when I was playing. It felt like, no matter what I did in the game, how I prepared for it or how well I played. The one thing I would get wrong is that the ball would end up in the back of my net.
“This is something Maguire is going through. He has to get out of it very quickly, otherwise, he won’t be at the club. The standards are so high. His head will be all over the place, he’s getting criticism left, right and centre. I actually think the crowd cheered when he went off, which isn’t a nice thing for anyone.
“I’ve always been a fan of Harry Maguire, I think he’s had a really good career. He gets criticised because he cost £80m and Liverpool signed Virgil van Dijk for £75m and Van Dijk is the best defender in the world. He is a phenomenon. Harry Maguire’s not that.
“But he doesn’t set the price – he had a great summer with England at the Euros, but this season has been a disaster for him.”
Paul Scholes had compared Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp to Old Trafford legend Sir Alex Ferguson before the game. United's subsequent exit from the Champions League means that Liverpool’s rivals will finish the season without a trophy for the fifth consecutive season.
