Harry Maguire has now done something no other Manchester United player ever has

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Harry Maguire was the hero for Manchester United on Sunday – scoring a thumping header in the 84th minute to seal all three points at Anfield.

It marked a first win for the Red Devils over Liverpool on Merseyside since January 2016 – and the Manchester United No.5 certainly understood the significance of his contribution as he celebrated passionately.

Harry Maguire even earned a Premier League award for his performance – one that no other Manchester United player has ever received.

Harry Maguire becomes first Manchester United star to win Premier League Player of the Matchweek award

In a new award created at the start of the current campaign, fans can now vote for who they feel was the best player from each matchday.

Maguire – who Joshua Zirkzee praised – won the prize for matchday eight with a whopping 42% of the vote, far ahead of his closest rival Erling Haaland, who received 14%.

Jean-Philippe Mateta finished third with 12% after scoring a hat-trick against Bournemouth.

2025/26 Player of the Matchweek winners

• Matchweek Eight: Harry Maguire (Manchester United)
• Matchweek Seven: Moises Caicedo (Chelsea)
• Matchweek Six: Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
• Matchweek Five: Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool)
• Matchweek Four: Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham)
• Matchweek Three: Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool)
• Matchweek Two: Joao Palhinha (Tottenham)
• Matchweek One: Richarlison (Tottenham)

The challenge for Maguire and his Manchester United colleagues now is to maintain these standards following back-to-back wins in the Premier League under Ruben Amorim.

Wayne Rooney has been proven right about Harry Maguire

Some eyebrows were raised when Amorim selected the England international over Leny Yoro for the trip to Anfield, but it was vindicated as he not only scored the winning goal, but kept Alexander Isak and Mohamed Salah silent.

It suggests the man from Lisbon may have listened to a club legend.

Rooney urged Amorim to start Maguire more often after the embarrassing 3-0 defeat at Manchester City back in September, saying: “Harry should be starting. I’d seen Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink talking about it, and saying how much England missed Harry Maguire at the Euros.

“How is he not playing (ahead of) the three defenders who are playing? There’s a lack of leadership.”

Rooney was spot on, and the decision to start Maguire at Anfield unquestionably paid off after the 32-year-old stepped up to save Manchester United.