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Harry Maguire believes Manchester United's players lack courage following their 1-1 draw with Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday. The experienced centre-back also discussed Lisandro Martinez's position at the club after a scathing midweek assessment of senior figures at Old Trafford. The Red Devils appeared to have discovered their rhythm during the first-half of the game, with Bryan Mbeumo finishing from close quarters to hand the away side the advantage after 35 minutes. However, Dominic Calvert-Lewin eventually secured a share of the spoils in North Yorkshire following a cleverly executed corner shortly after the interval.
As a result, United find themselves 13th in the Premier League table with just one win from their opening seven fixtures. Michael Carrick will also be sensing the mounting pressure, given the elevated expectations from the board.
Speaking to Sky Sports following United's result against the Whites, Maguire suggested the frustrating stalemate was ultimately a question of courage. He said: "We worked on it this week.
"We wanted to match them up without the ball and go quite aggressive. It was a bit of a five without the ball and a bit of a four with the ball.
"Fluid in midfield. We knew we could get a lot of joy in the middle of the pitch with them only playing two in there. That's probably the area of the game where we could've done more.
"We could've been a bit braver with the ball and taken the ball under pressure. But we're in a circumstance where we are not as brave as we should be, and we have to get that back because to win games for Man Utd we have to have that bravery and composure."
It comes as Maguire also touched on the club's situation with Martinez, who was openly critical of the club's senior leadership in the wake of Tuesday's 2-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. The Argentine demanded more from technical director, Jason Wilcox, despite a largely successful summer or recruitment, while also suggesting that scrutiny should be put on those above Carrick instead of the head coach.
Speaking about how that saga has progressed throughout the week, Maguire explained: "There's been a lot of noise around the club this week - as there is every week - but more so, this week. Lisandro's come out, he's apologised, we've moved on from it."
Despite his comments, Martinez featured for the Red Devils as they did battle with Leeds, but was replaced by Noussair Mazraoui at half-time as a result of an issue with his thigh.
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