Harry Maguire is no longer seen as a caricature to be laughed at; instead, many people now merely feel bad for him.
The Manchester United defender was subject to the limelight from the time he arrived at Old Trafford. He became the most expensive defender in the world in 2019 as the Red Devils paid £80 million to acquire him and wrest him away from Leicester.
Maguire was given the position of club captain as soon as he entered the building, which only served to add to the strain. History has since proven that the England international was just unable to handle the pressure. Errors happened far too frequently, and when they did, they were frequently wildly comical.
Maguire became the target of many jokes as a result of all of this, but the real indication that things have reached their breaking point is unquestionably when a player’s teammates begin publicly dissing him.
Of course, competitive football is a sport in which tempers frequently flare and harsh words are spoken. The most notable Maguire-inspired meltdowns are listed here.
Onana’s fury
Andre Onana has only been at United for three weeks, but it’s obvious he already feels comfortable enough to scold Maguire. Due to some poor defending, Borussia Dortmund broke and had nearly complete freedom of United’s penalty area when Onana was called upon to make a save.
As soon as the attempt was stopped, Onana leaped to his feet and charged aggressively toward Maguire, yelling at the defender as the custodian was incensed about how he had been left exposed. Maguire walked away in the opposite direction without even appearing to make much of a response.
Rashford’s tirade
Even Marcus Rashford, who is regarded as one of the nicest players in Premier League football, allowed his anger to overwhelm him following a confrontation with Maguire back in 2021.
Rashford yelled, “What do you want me to do,” in response to Maguire’s expression of displeasure as the now-former United captain attempted to get on the end of a header but was called offside. The final punch was given by Rashford, who bit back and said, “Shut the f*** up, f****** k*******,” after Maguire quickly responded, “F*****g get back onside.”
The on-pitch bust-up led to suggestions that Rashford was “fed up” with life at United from BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Pat Nevin, who claimed: “Marcus Rashford’s body language just doesn’t look right, it’s noticeable with somebody like him as he always has good body language, he’s generally always up for it.
“I don’t know… is he a bit fed up being stuck on the left wing? Does he want to play a bit more central? Who knows.”
Ronaldo’s leadership conflict
Some people might already be unaware that Maguire had served as United captain after having the position revoked from him lately and given to Bruno Fernandes.
It was widely believed that there was disagreement in the United dressing room on who should hold the position of captain when Cristiano Ronaldo made his spectacular comeback at the start of the 21–22 season.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner was well-respected by his United teammates and had prior experience as a captain at both Real Madrid and Juventus.
Legendary United player Gary Neville expressed displeasure with the way the subject divided the team, alleging that Ronaldo’s presence made Maguire feel “inferior” and inferior.
The mist of Fred spreads.
Similar to Maguire, Fred has endured his fair share of abuse throughout his United career and has frequently been written off as being unworthy of a team of the Red Devils’ caliber.
And then, two years ago, during a 0-0 draw away at Leeds, even he got into it with the defender. Due to the epidemic, Elland Road was relatively empty, and pitch-side microphones had little trouble picking up Maguire and Fred’s argument.
Even though it appeared that Maguire had called the Brazilian international a “f*****g idiot” after Fred had complained about the defender’s mistake, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the manager at the time, was eager to put a stop to any rumors of a dispute.
“We have got a group that demands a lot of each other,” the United legend explained. “The standard is high, both in training and in a game, it is not just about being a nice guy.”
Maguire hits back
If you want proof that the defense isn’t always the target of criticism, just ask Aaron Wan-Bissaka. Maguire has been known to give it out on a few occasions.
Maguire yelled, “F****** tidy up, stop giving the f****** ball away!” because the United right-back had lost possession of the ball too frequently for his comfort. Maguire can hold his own when necessary and, more importantly, when other people are making blunders, as this particular circumstance demonstrates.