Manchester United captain Harry Maguire has come under fire with the club supporters again during a pre-season friendly against Aston Villa.
The England international has been one of the most criticized and mocked players at the club after they had a disappointing 2021/22 season. United finished the season in the sixth position and also recorded their lowest points tally in history.
When Harry Maguire’s name was called before the start of their pre-season game today against Aston Villa, many fans were not happy to hear his name and they booed him.
The England international also faced a nasty reception from primarily United’s supporters in Australia when the team played Crystal Palace earlier this week. A lot of boos were heard across the stadium whenever he touched the ball.
Recall that, before the club’s first season under the management of new manager Erik ten Hag, some fans called for the captaincy to be revoked, but the Dutchman promptly dismissed requests to demote the £80 million center defender.
‘Harry Maguire is the captain. He’s an established captain, he’s achieved a lot of success, so I don’t doubt this issue,’ Ten Hag said.
The new United boss later added that Harry Maguire is really impressive and he expects a lot from him because as the captain he sees him with a lot of responsibilities.
Harry Maguire vs Aston Villa – Pre Season Friendly 👏🏴 pic.twitter.com/os2Br7mbbS
— Shaq 🇾🇪 (@TenSlag) July 23, 2022
According to the former Ajax head coach, team building is an important point and he always talks about a group of leaders which makes the captain a really important role and he’s happy with Harry Maguire. Maguire validated his new manager’s confidence in him with a strong performance at the center of the team’s defense today and a crucial interception that blocked Villa from scoring.
His outstanding performance appeared to have shifted the opinion of the spectators, who clapped anytime he touched the ball before he was replaced just after the hour mark.
However, the game ended 2-2 in Perth despite United having a two-goal advantage at the break, as Aston Villa equalized with goals from Leon Bailey and Calum Chambers in the second half.
Manchester United will now be looking forward to the next season as their pre-season tour came to an end today. Erik ten Hag and his boys had one of the best performances in the pre-season games across Europe – winning three games and drawing one.
However, they are still not yet with their star player Cristiano Ronaldo after he was left out of the traveling squad. The Portugal hitman is also interested in leaving the club this summer as he prefers to play in the UEFA Champions League next season.
