HARRY MAGUIRE, it appears, has finally grown sick of getting splinters in his backside.
Finally cracked, after months of keeping his head down and working his nuts off to try and reclaim a regular place in Manchester United’s wafer-thin defence.
Manchester United ace Harry Maguire snapped about the lack of minutesAlamy
Finally his frustration has replaced the silent fortitude which won him such respect for the dignified way he battled to reignite his career.
Unfortunately for Harry, the one thing it didn’t win was the favour of Erik ten Hag. As the months passed, it became more obvious it was never going to.
Which brought us to that media conference ahead of England’s what’s-the-point friendly against Australia on Friday, when Maguire admitted enough is enough.
If he continues to play no more than a cameo role for the club, he told us, then it may well be time to look for another.
All very understandable, of course. Horses for courses and all that, and Maguire clearly doesn’t suit the Ten Hag stable.
Yet as he sat there, some questions nagged away . . . Why now, Harry? What’s changed? Wasn’t summer the ideal opportunity for all this?
It’s not as if he has only just slipped into the wilderness. He went into this season knowing he was fourth-choice centre-back — at best.
Maguire isn’t stupid, he’s been in the game at the highest level for long enough. He knows where he features in Ten Hag’s thinking.
Last season told him that, when he began only eight Premier League games. Moving left-back Luke Shaw to the middle was a more attractive option for the manager.
So what made him think he was suddenly about to turn into a regular? Two Prem starts prove he won’t. Had it not been for injuries, he might still be awaiting his first.
Last week was one of them, and you couldn’t disguise the irony of him being United’s best defender against Brentford, for all it was a pretty low bar.
It was Maguire’s flick which teed up Scott McTominay for the 97th-minute winner. Two men Ten Hag has frozen out ended up saving his skin.
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Maguire has fallen down the pecking order at Manchester UnitedRichard Pelham / The Sun
It was almost unbelievable . . . just like the idea he hasn’t already had plenty of meetings with the United manager to discuss his future.
Which brings us back to why he suddenly feels the need to mention moving now. If he is worried about it affecting his England chances, surely he was in the summer.
A summer, remember, when he could have joined West Ham had a deal gone through.
The Hammers were keen, Ten Hag would have all but driven him there himself, yet the apparent stumbling block was the size of the pay-off Maguire demanded.
There were those on the London side of the proposed transfer, though, who had doubts about whether Harry was ever really that keen on joining them at all.
He would clearly have preferred a move to Newcastle or Tottenham, that’s hardly a shock, but neither was interested.
Maguire may think he can last longer than Ten Hag at Manchester UnitedAlamy
So he stayed put, that pay-off stalemate actually providing a handy and eminently plausible excuse.
Yet there is another, more devilish, thought over why he wasn’t in a great rush to leave which springs to mind here. The next couple of months will not only show whether Maguire is going to become a regular name on the teamsheet, they will also decide much about United’s season.
With no points from two Champions League games, it will be a brief return to Europe’s top table should things not pick up.
With Newcastle in the Last 16, the Old Trafford club’s defence of the Carabao Cup may be a brief one.
And with City, Chelsea, the Toon and Liverpool on the horizon for a team which went into the international break in tenth, United may soon only have a distant view of the top four.
Had they not pulled it out of the fire against Brentford last week, there was no danger Ten Hag’s job would have been under threat. But, make no mistake, the inquests wouldn’t have been far away.
Maguire is still being called up for England action by Gareth SouthgateGetty
So perhaps, just perhaps, Maguire — who has shown plenty of patience thus far — is happy to play the long game.
Perhaps, just perhaps, he believes if he sits tight, he could actually end up outlasting his manager in Manchester.
You couldn’t blame him for thinking so.
CITY WEAK TO FORGET
MANCHESTER CITY have lost two league games in a row for the first time in five years, so it is ludicrous to mention the word “crisis”.
It is still far from that, and says much about the standards City set for anyone to even whisper as much.
They will bounce back and remain favourites to make it four titles in a row.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola can’t afford more injuriesReuters
But what is hard to get away from is the feeling Pep Guardiola’s Treble winners are a weaker unit than 12 months ago.
Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez have gone while Kevin De Bruyne remains injured.
They have depth to cope and are far from weak — but most definitely weaker.
And Guardiola will be sweating rather more than normal this time should any others join the casualty list.
SQUEAKY BRUM TIME
OF all the stars to emerge over the last 20 years, few have shone quite as brightly as Wayne Rooney.
Manchester United’s 253-goal all-time top scorer, a setter of milestones, smasher of records and a genuine great.
Wayne Rooney is facing his biggest managerial challenge at Birmingham CityGetty
Sacking John Eustace and replacing him with Rooney was certainly a bold move by Birmingham City.
Yet it is perhaps an even bolder one by the new boss.
Rooney did a fair job in impossible circumstances at Derby. He could not say the same after 15 months in the MLS with DC United.
Now he inherits a team punching above their weight, not one in freefall. Taking Birmingham into the play-offs is the minimum demand.
Succeed and the next step is upwards. But flop and the only way is down. Make no mistake, the pressure is on.
RAM JAM
AARON RAMSDALE was Arsenal’s No 1 a month ago with hopes of being the same for England. Now he is on the bench for both.
Mikel Arteta’s bizarre claim he would chop and change with David Raya always looked dubious. The truth is Ramsdale’s chances of being England’s top dog have been stiffed by his boss.
MUST ROSE ABOVE
IF England beat Fiji today, one of the worst Red Rose sides to contest the World Cup will be 80 minutes from the final.
After a kind draw, England must go beyond the semis to justify any sort of celebration. Yet one thing is guaranteed . . .
Given the axing of George Ford and Freddie Steward, and naming a 23 with three fly-halves and a makeshift full-back, Steve Borthwick will find his neck on the block if they fail.