Former Manchester United captain Gary Neville has claimed that Harry Maguire can have the same impact on the Red Devils as Virgil van Dijk has had on Liverpool.

Van Dijk has been widely praised for his performances since arriving at Anfield in January 2018, with the 28-year-old playing a key role in the Reds winning last season's Champions League.

Maguire passed Van Dijk as the world's most expensive defender when he completed a move to the 20-time English champions in the latter stages of the summer transfer window.

The England international impressed on his United debut on Sunday afternoon with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side recording a 4-0 win over Chelsea at Old Trafford.

Neville has lavished praise on Maguire for his performance, and the pundit has claimed that the former Leicester City centre-back could become United's Van Dijk.

"Maguire looks secure and he looks strong. Every time the ball came near him in the air he won it and he never looked any different to how he was for England or Leicester," the former defender said on the Gary Neville podcast.

"I think that was the main thing; coming here with a huge price tag in a big game as a Manchester United player for the first time it didn't look like anything had changed.

"He has a really good temperament. The hope is that he doesn't just do his job, but he is a catalyst for strengthening the whole team. The great centre-backs I played with didn't just help themselves during the game, they also had a big impact on others. We have spoken about Virgil van Dijk doing that at Liverpool.

"It's too early to say Maguire will make the same difference as Van Dijk, but there's a chance. Manchester City wanted Maguire and Manchester United won him and they so needed him. A character, a personality, a leader, a dominant force, he will bring stability to the club for the next five or six years."

Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James also made their debuts for the club against Chelsea, with the latter coming off the bench to score the final goal of the match late on. body check tags ::