England and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has shrugged off the disrespectful and downright abusing comments he has gotten since his gaffe for the Three Lions against Scotland.
The 30-year-old defender was the subject of heavy criticism and vitriolic comments following his performances for the England national team in the just concluded September 2023 international break.
The former Leicester City man has also struggled in the last two seasons at Manchester United, which led to him being stripped off the captain’s armband which he earned rightfully a year into his Old Trafford career.
While Erik ten Hag continues to see him as “just another option” in Man United, he remains untouchable for Gareth Southgate in England. The former midfielder showed it when he gave Maguire some decent minutes in their two international games against Ukraine and Scotland.
Maguire made mistakes in both games, with one of them resulting in the loss of a clean sheet against Scotland in the friendly game between both sides. In trying to defend a Scotland attack, the defender turned the ball into his own net, leaving goalkeeper Jordan Pickford sprawling in the other direction where the ball was meant to be headed.
The resulting backlash was labelled “a joke” by Southgate but Maguire has taken it all on the chin. The central defender instead stated that the criticism and abuse is better directed his way as it allows his teammates to step up and improve the lot of the group as a whole.
“Well, it pretty much takes the pressure away from my team-mates and puts it all on myself! It makes them play better, for sure,” Maguire told reporters after the 3-1 win over Scotland, in which he scored Scotland’s one goal.
“I would not say I am a person who struggles with pressure mentally. I have been through a lot in the last couple of years and I have been Manchester United captain for nearly four years.
“You take a huge lot of responsibility and everything that comes with it – and that is a lot of bad as well as good.
“But it was a huge honour (to play for England against Scotland). It was a hostile environment – when you hear the national anthem and the way they disrespect that – and they piled pressure on myself. I would not say I am used to it, but I can deal with it.”
The former Hull City man also spoke to why he remained at Man United despite being close to an exit.
“How can I put this? We just didn’t come to an agreement and they were happy for me to stay and I was happy to fight for my place,” he said. “I want to do that and every time I train or play I will give everything.
“I considered everything (in the summer) and I know, at the moment, when I have not started a game in the first four of the season, the story comes to me.
“I finished off last season with two very strong performances for England and I have played in all five matches to help put us where we are in qualifying, so I need to keep performing when I get chosen.
“Listen, at club football, I want to play games, I want to play football. The first four weeks were hard because it was one game a week and the manager (Erik Ten Hag) didn’t select me, but we have lots of games coming up now and I am sure I will play lots of games.”
