harry maguire
- Maguire out of favor at United
- West Ham want defender
- Alan Smith believes selling Maguire would be mistake
WHAT HAPPENED? Maguire has been linked with a move to Premier League rivals, West Ham, who have had their preliminary bid rejected by Manchester United. Maguire was also stripped off captaincy by head coach Erik ten Hag earlier this month with Bruno Fernandes taking over the captain’s armband.
WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking to Gambling Zone, ex-Man United and England forward, Alan Smith, said: “Realistically I think Harry Maguire knows he’s not going to play every game, he’s probably come to terms with that. But I think it will be up to Harry if he stays or goes. I suspect Ten Hag doesn’t want him to go because to go close you want those type of people at your club. He could play 20 games and be really consistent.
“When he first came there was a lot of pressure after that price tag to give him the armband anyway, and both pressures must have been difficult for him. It might help him to release some pressure if he stays. You look at other clubs, and to compete you need four class centre-backs to compete or at least three. He’s probably got a bigger part to play than people think. If they want to win the league and be successful in Europe they will need strength in depth. It will be up to Maguire if he needs first-team football every week.”
