HARRY MAGUIRE’S mum has labelled recent treatment of her son “disgraceful” and “totally unacceptable” amid widespread criticism of the defender.
The Manchester United centre-back, 30, scored an own goal as a second-half substitute during England’s 3-1 win over Scotland on Tuesday evening.
Harry Maguire has received huge criticism for his current formRex
Maguire’s mum, Zoe, centre, has slammed the abuse her son has receivedGetty Images – Getty
And he is struggling for game time at club level, with Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag picking the likes of Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof and Luke Shaw ahead of him over the past 12 months.
Scotland fans mocked Maguire every time he got on the ball in the friendly at Hampden Park.
It further magnified the storm around the Man Utd man – who rejected a move to West Ham in the summer as he sought a pay-off from Old Trafford bosses.
Now the England international’s mum, Zoe Maguire, has hit back at those slamming her son.
Speaking on Instagram, she said: “As a mum seeing the level of negative and abusive comments which my son is receiving from some fans, pundits and the media is disgraceful and totally unacceptable to any walk of life never mind someone who works his socks off for club and country.
“I was there in the stand as usual, It’s not acceptable what’s been created, over nothing.
“I understand that in the football world there are ups and downs, positives and negatives but what Harry receives has gone far beyond ‘football’.
“For me seeing him go through what he’s going through is not ok. I would hate to have to see any other parents or players go through this in the future, especially the young boys and girls breaking through the ranks today.
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ReutersMaguire turned into his own net against Scotland on Tuesday[/caption]
“Harry has a massive heart and it’s a good job he’s mentally strong and can handle it as others may not be able to. I wish this sort of abuse on nobody.”
Maguire has started just eight Premier League games since the beginning of last season.
His only minutes for Man Utd in the 2023/24 campaign came off the bench in the 3-1 defeat to Arsenal before the international break.
In the summer, Ten Hag stripped him of the captaincy and handed the armband to Bruno Fernandes.
Yet despite his struggles at club level, England boss Gareth Southgate started him in the Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine on Saturday – which ended in a 1-1 draw.
And Southgate remained vehemently defensive of the Man Utd man after his own goal against Scotland.
The Three Lions head coach said: “I’ve never known a player treated the way he is.
“He’s been an absolute stalwart for us in the second most successful England team for decades – he’s been an absolutely key part of that.
“I’ve talked about the importance of our senior players, he’s been crucial among that.
“Every time he goes on the field, the resilience he shows is absolutely incredible. He’s a top player and we’re all with him and our fans were brilliant with him.”
He went on to add: “From a Scotland fans’ point of view I get it. I have absolutely no complaints with what they did.
“But it’s a consequence of ridiculous treatment of him for a long period of time.
“It’s a joke. Not by the Scottish fans but by our own commentators, pundits or whatever it is.
“They’ve created something that’s beyond anything I have ever seen.
“I think our fans recognised, ‘OK there might be a bit of heat from our own supporters but we’re not going to have others getting into him’.”
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