“This guy deserves to be the team captain, he has been doing everything for the success of the club since I arrived”: Manchester United’s coach Ruben Amorim says there’s one United’s player who deserved to be the team captain more than Bruno Fernandes

Ruben Amorim says Harry Maguire has become a leader again for Manchester United.

Maguire was stripped of the captaincy by former manager Erik ten Hag in July 2023 and came close to joining West Ham a month later after the club accepted a £30million offer.

Since those trying times, Maguire has had an impressive 18 months and was treated to a standing ovation from the 7,956 United supporters in attendance for the FA Cup third round tie at Arsenal.

Maguire was forced off in extra time as he had missed two training sessions in the week through illness and he will be assessed ahead of the Premier League visit of Southampton on Thursday evening.

Amorim said Maguire was “dead” when he was replaced by Leny Yoro in the 104th minute on Sunday. “I think he changed the way he sees himself,” Amorim said. “I believe a lot in Harry. I said this when we signed the new contract – you can say the new contract. He needs to improve on the pitch and outside the pitch.

“You can see the way he plays now is different because he believes a lot in himself. I think we have to praise Harry more than me. He’s doing a great job.

Ruben Amorim’s arrival has reportedly led to one transfer being prevented from happening at Manchester United.

Back in October, after United fell to a 2-1 defeat against West Ham United at the London Stadium, Dutchman Erik ten Hag was sacked.

39-year-old Portuguese Amorim was chosen to be the successor after his impressive record at Sporting Clube de Portugal.

Since then, Amorim has led United to positive results against Manchester City and Liverpool.

Over the weekend, United sealed their place in the fourth round of the FA Cup after beating Arsenal via a tense penalty shootout.

During the match, Amorim brought on 21-year-old Toby Collyer in the 81st minute, replacing Kobbie Mainoo.

Collyer impressed with his energy and aggressive tackling, leading to a potential change of mind within the club.

Originally, there were reports that Collyer could be allowed to leave on loan to gain more experience with clubs in the Championship linked.

However, as reported by The Athletic, United now have no plans to loan out the youngster.

The report stated: “The midfielder’s contract expires in June 2027, with the option of an extra year. The club has no plans to loan him out this month and, given the unconvincing form of Eriksen and Casemiro, Collyer could feature in more matches.

“He is not yet the finished product. Like many others within United’s current squad, Collyer is still learning the intricacies of what their head coach requires, both on and off the ball.”

Speaking after the match against Arsenal, Amorim said: “It was really important because [it] gives us more strength, and then with less one player, he’s really hard to press.

“It’s really hard to press a team like Arsenal with 11 players, imagine with 10 players, and then you are in [a] disadvantage, [it] is really hard because they can control the ball. They were already controlling the ball in a lot of moments. So it was vital to win the game, to draw the game.”

United are back in Premier League action on Thursday night when thet take on Southampton.