Harry Maguire declares Arsenal penalty award shows why ‘we need’ VAR

Harry Maguire has suggested video assistant referees are essential to the modern game, pointing to the controversial penalty that Arsenal won against him and his Manchester United team on Sunday to drive the argument.

Maguire was stunned to be penalised by the referee, Andrew Madley, in the 69th minute of the FA Cup third-round tie with the score at 1-1 and United down to 10 men after Diogo Dalot’s red card. The central defender had stood his ground against the Arsenal striker Kai Havertz, putting out an arm at worst only to watch his opponent tumble to the ground.

VAR is not in use in the early rounds of the competition – it comes in from the fifth round onwards. “It’s a tough one,” Maguire said, when asked if it was the worst penalty decision he had seen. “At the time when he gave it … my initial instinct was that it will be all right, VAR will turn it over and then I clicked on in my head that VAR could not intervene. So that’s when my head went a little bit.

“He [Madley] probably looks back … he knows he got it wrong. That’s why we have VAR because in the big moments, we need them correct and it’s a tough gig if we don’t have help for them [referees].”

Altay Bayindir saved the ensuing spot-kick from Arsenal’s captain, Martin Ødegaard, before United eventually advanced on penalties, Joshua Zirkzee converting the winner to complete a near-perfect redemptive arc – one to which Maguire could certainly relate.

Zirkzee was cheered off the field by the Old Trafford crowd when substituted in the 33rd minute of the 2-1 defeat by Newcastle on 30 December; the striker had been unable to do anything right in what was up to that point an abject collective display.

Maguire knows how it feels to be ridiculed by fans, including his own. His substitution towards the end of United’s Champions League exit against Atlético Madrid in March 2022 was cheered by a section of the Old Trafford support.

It was one of the lows of the most difficult season of Maguire’s career, which would be followed by the lost campaign of 2022-23 when he sank to the bottom of United’s central defensive pecking order.

The player’s fightback after a tough start to last season has won him a lot of respect; there was another detail to it on 3 January when United triggered the one-year option in his contract to tie him down until the summer of 2026.

One of the takeaways from the Arsenal Cup tie was the love that United’s away fans showered on Zirkzee after he came on as an 81st-minute substitute. It was rooted in characteristic defiance and there were signs of a reconnection from Zirkzee’s point of view even before he scored his penalty. He had turned towards the travelling support after the end of extra time to gee them up.

Joshua Zirkzee celebrates with Manchester United’s fans after scoring the winning penalty against Arsenal. Photograph: Matt Impey/Shutterstock

“I’ve had a time for this club where things are tough and everyone seems to come against you,” Maguire said. “But one thing’s for sure is that the United fans stick with you. When times were tough they stuck with me.

“That game against Newcastle … he [Zirkzee] was the unfortunate one to get subbed off. You could have subbed any of the 11 players off at that moment and they would have all got booed – we all deserved to get booed because we were awful in the first 30 minutes.

“It had nothing to do really with Josh. He probably knows that and he probably felt it at the time, even though it was disappointing for him. It’s a great ending that he scores the winning penalty and the lads had full faith in him that he would do.”

The win over Arsenal continued a trend for United under Ruben Amorim: the capacity to be competitive against the very top teams away from home. Although they lost 2-0 at the Emirates in the Premier League, they won 2-1 at Manchester City and drew 2-2 at Liverpool. The problem has been the focus against plenty of other clubs and Maguire knows there will be scrutiny on the mentality when bottom-of-the-table Southampton visit on Thursday.

“Our consistency this year has been really, really poor,” Maguire said. “We can produce moments. We produced a moment in the FA Cup final last year [when they beat City] but over a long period, our consistency’s been bad. It’s something that we do need to nail down, starting with Thursday.

“We also have to realise that we are still where we are in the league table [13th]. We can’t rest because the league table to look at is embarrassing. We all have belief that we should be a lot higher. To be sat where we are, it’s nowhere near good enough. It’s down to us to change it. We’ve got to go on a little run.”

Maguire was ill with the flu last week and missed training on Friday but he produced a nine out of 10 performance against Arsenal and believes he has worked his way back to his best.

“I think my first couple of years at United were probably the best part of my career,” he said. “I’m getting back to that level. I think I was also at that level last season so it’s been 18 months now where I’d say I’ve been playing consistently well for this club again.

“There’s no doubt I had a tough year in my third season [in 2021-22]. I knew I needed to find something to stay at this club because it demands high standards and I feel like I’ve found something.

“Ruben said to me that when it came across to him that I had an option [for a contract extension], it was a no-brainer for him. It’s given me confidence and belief that they want me at the club and part of this project.”