Harry Maguire is enjoying an excellent run of form for Man Utd and Michael Carrick has praised the experienced central defender.

Michael Carrick labelled Harry Maguire “better than ever” at the age of 32 and said he hoped the centre-back would extend his Old Trafford career, suggesting the experience he brings to the dressing room was invaluable.

Maguire returned to the Manchester United side in Carrick’s first game in charge and has kept his place ever since, producing a string of excellent performances that have put him in the frame for an England recall.

The 32-year-old is heading into the final three months of his contract at Old Trafford and talks are yet to progress over an extension, but there is an expectation that Maguire will stay at the club and his form for Carrick has made the strongest possible case that he is deserving of a new deal.

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The departure of 34-year-old Casemiro this summer will leave a vacuum of experience in a younger squad being built at United, and that could strengthen Maguire’s hand to stay at the club, with Carrick full of praise for the leadership he is bringing.

“I think within the squad there’s always that balance,” the United head coach said. “You want that younger potential and that excitement of developing players and helping players, you need that little sweet spot in the middle where players are at the peak, you certainly need that within the group.

“Experience is massive; it’s hard to put a price on how valuable that can be. Whether that’s individuals, whether that’s experience as a whole group, but Harry’s gained an awful lot of experience in different ways through this club, and Case leaving is another one with experience and it’s something we’ve got to obviously understand and what that means.”

Maguire’s performances have stood out recently. He was excellent again in the 1-0 win at Everton on Monday night and having developed an excellent partnership with Lisandro Martinez, he dovetailed nicely with 20-year-old Leny Yoro at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Asked if the 64-cap England international was now better than he had ever been, Carrick said: “There’s a case I think.

“I think as your career goes, when you’re a young player, everything’s fresh and everything’s new, and you’re fearless, and there aren’t many scars there, so you’re full of excitement.

“You get to your peak years which is kind of where you’re at and you feel good and everything’s there, but obviously you’ve had a few ups and downs along the way and then I think you start getting towards the later times and the experience that you’ve gained then makes you a better player, or should make you a better player from learning from that.

“I think we’ve seen that with Harry’s performances of late really, of what he’s brought to the team, and he’s been so important as well as many others. I think that’s why experience is important to use it. I certainly felt that when I was playing, that it was 30, 31, 32 that probably was my best years really, just being at that sweet spot of being able to do it physically still, but using the kind of experiences to know what’s coming and probably seeing a bit of everything by that stage so it’s not a surprise.

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“Harry’s an impressive character. He’s had a great career so far. Hopefully there’s a lot more to come. He has been here in the journey and the experiences that he’s had, certainly since he’s been here and with England as well. I think it shows exactly what he is.

“I think we all know the player that he is and what he’s capable of doing. Again, the other night there [at Everton], I thought he was fantastic. Experience helps and his attributes help with that and his character, his willingness to put himself out there and he is really impressive and he has been really important for us.”

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