I have been critical of Harry Maguire in a Manchester United shirt, but usually for England he proves why he is one of Gareth Southgate’s most trusted experienced players.
A vital cog in his defence.
At Old Trafford, however, his time is looking up.
The same could be said about his place in the England squad because it will be difficult for Southgate to continue picking Maguire if he is not playing regular football for his club, like Marc Guehi at Crystal Palace.
An own goal in the 67th minute against Scotland simply highlighted how the agenda to mock Maguire is becoming more than pantomime. Scotland fans jeered him when he came on for Guehi at half-time, which is nothing to worry about, but he’s had this kind of abuse from his own fans which is unacceptable.
Southgate was asked about Maguire after the 3-1 win over Scotland, as quoted by The Athletic’s Tim Spiers on X, formerly known as Twitter:
“It’s a consequence of ridiculous treatment of him for a long period of time. It’s a joke, I’ve never known a player treated like he is, not by the Scottish fans, by our own commentators, pundits, whatever it is.
“It’s beyond anything I’ve ever seen.”
Southgate said he had "absolutely no complaint" with the Scotland fans getting at Maguire. Just general culture.
"Every time he goes on the field the resilience he shows, the balls he shows, is absolutely incredible. We're all with him, our fans were brilliant with him tonight."
— Tim Spiers (@TimSpiers) September 12, 2023
Southgate added he had “absolutely no complaint” with the Scotland fans getting at Maguire, which as we said above is just general football culture.
“Every time he goes on the field the resilience he shows, the balls he shows, is absolutely incredible. We’re all with him, our fans were brilliant with him tonight.”
Personally, I think it’s worse that Maguire gets this from his own fans too – even if that wasn’t the case tonight at Hampden Park.
And certainly not by United fans – bar the odd pre-season game when some people are let out of their cages.
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