Gareth Southgate defended Harry Maguire after the Manchester United defender’s own goal in Tuesday’s 3-1 friendly victory over Scotland, saying he had never witnessed anything like the “ridiculous” treatment of the player. Maguire, whose £80 million transfer from Leicester City to Old Trafford in 2019 remains the world record fee for a defender, has been the target of criticism for what have been perceived as subpar performances over the past few months.
Despite Maguire’s ongoing troubles at the club level, Southgate continues to be a devoted supporter and has called him up for international games, much to the amusement of fans.
After starting against Ukraine in a 1-1 draw in a Euro 2024 qualifying match over the weekend, Maguire, a dependable member of England’s backline, was picked as a substitute for the 150th Anniversary Heritage game versus Scotland.
Lewis Dunk and Marc Guehi started the game as a duo, but when Guehi was taken off at halftime, Southgate chose to replace him with Maguire rather than Levi Colwill or Fikayo Tomori.
Sadly for Southgate, the choice backfired when Maguire attempted to block an Andy Robertson cross but instead only managed to deflect the ball into his own net with England leading by two goals thanks to Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham.
England eventually recovered their two-goal advantage through Harry Kane despite giving Scotland a chance to get back into the game, but Maguire faced particularly nasty abuse from the Hampden Park fans during the second half.
After the game, Southgate gave a passionate defense of the 30-year-old to the media, calling the frequent criticism a “laugh,” adding: “From a Scotland fans’ point of view, I get it, and I have no absolutely no complaints about what they did.
Sincerelly, it is the result of long-term, outrageous treatment of him, and I believe our followers understood that they would not tolerate outsiders attacking him despite some possible heat from their own supporters. However, it’s a joke.
“I have never witnessed a player handled in the manner that he is, not by the Scottish supporters, by our own commentators, pundits, or whatever; they have produced something that is beyond anything I have ever seen.
He has been a steadfast member of the second-most successful English squad for decades and has played a crucial role in that.
He has been a key member of our senior players, and I have mentioned their value. He is a quality player, and we are all behind him. Every time he steps onto the field, he displays incredible resilience and ball skills.
“Our supporters tonight did a great job with him. Yes, I have some strong feelings about it. He is good, he is amazing, and he played a significant role in our successful victory. He came forward like he always does, which is a huge compliment to his character.
Maguire made his 59th appearance in an England jersey at Hampden Park in the second half. He has now appeared in each of the Three Lions’ past 18 games after being an unused substitute in a friendly victory over Switzerland in March 2022.
Although the former Leicester player has only played 23 minutes of Premier League football thus far this season, Maguire will likely start if Martinez avoids an injury scare. When Manchester United plays Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, Maguire is likely to start on the bench.
