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Michael Owen claims Man Utd tried to ‘mimic’ Liverpool signing but it hasn’t worked out
Manchester United signed Harry Maguire for a world-record fee in the summer.
Man Utd: Harry Maguire compared to van Dijk by pundit
Manchester United tried to “mimic” Liverpool’s signing of Virgil van Dijk by purchasing Harry Maguire in the summer, says Michael Owen.
Maguire joined United from Leicester City for a fee of £80million.
The England international became the world’s most expensive defender, eclipsing the £75m Liverpool paid Southampton for Van Dijk in January 2018.
However, Owen says Maguire has not yet had the same impact at United as Van Dijk has at Liverpool.
Manchester United probably tried to mimic that signing in Harry Maguire but unfortunately the players around him aren’t of the same standard
He claims that is because Maguire’s team-mates are not as good as the Dutchman’s.
“Virgil van Dijk is possibly one of the best signings in recent seasons,” Owen told Premier League Productions.
“He’s a colossus at the back for Liverpool, everybody knows how much he’s improved the defence and those around him.
“Manchester United probably tried to mimic that signing in Harry Maguire but unfortunately the players around him aren’t of the same standard and the same calibre as Virgil van Dijk has got around him.”
United and Liverpool go head-to-head in the Premier League at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Owen says it is still the biggest match in English football but can only see Liverpool coming out on top.
The Reds have won their last 17 league matches and are looking to match Manchester City’s all-time Premier League record of 18 straight wins.
“I believe it’s the biggest game in Britain,” Owen continued.
“Liverpool have probably not been this good for decades and decades and Manchester United have not been this bad for decades and decades.
“It’s a staggering set of results they’ve had recently, especially away from home.
“But I think it’s been a gradual decline over a number of years now. It’s very worrying for all Manchester United fans.
“Liverpool have got the best attacking trio in the world and Manchester United are very short on goals, very short on options.
“You’ve got the real extremes and you can only really see one result.”