Maguire booed by Manchester United fans in Melbourne friendly

The crowd of 76,499, most of whom were United fans, booed Maguire almost every time he touched the ball

Maguire booed by Manchester United fans in Melbourne friendly
Harry Maguire

Manchester United captain Harry Maguire suffered the ignominy of being booed 18 times by some of his own supporters in Manchester United’s 3-1 friendly win over Crystal Palace in Melbourne.

The crowd of 76,499, most of whom were United fans, booed Maguire almost every time he touched the ball for most of the first half even though the centre back was one of the team’s best performers.

Although some United fans later cheered and chanted his name, others decided to boo the club captain, who has had a number of poor performances over the course of the past year.

Even before kick-off in Australia, fans booed when Maguire’s name was read out over the public address system at the MCG. The jeering stopped halfway through the first half but then resumed just before the interval. Maguire, along with another nine United players, was substituted in the 66th minute.

The 29-year-old was arguably United’s best player in the first half, putting in a couple of vital blocks and coming close to scoring at the other end of the pitch with a curling shot.

It is not the first time that supporters have turned on the defender, who joined from Leicester City in 2019 for £85 million. Last season, United supporters at Old Trafford cheered when Maguire was replaced by Juan Mata in a Champions League knockout stage game against Atletico Madrid.

England supporters have also shown their displeasure towards Maguire of late, jeering him in the win over Ivory Coast in March. That prompted an angry response from the England manager Gareth Southgate.“I thought the reception was a joke, an absolute joke,” Southgate said. “What he’s done for us and the way he has performed for England has been phenomenal.”

Erik ten Hag, the new United manager, gave Maguire a vote of confidence last week when he announced that the defender would continue as captain. He is an established captain,” Ten Hag said. “I have to get to know all of the players but he has been captain for years, he has achieved a lot of success, so I don’t doubt this issue.”

Maguire himself admitted at a question-and-answer session in Melbourne this week that his form had dipped. “Last year was disappointing,” he said. “As an individual, I didn’t play well and as team we certainly didn’t play well.

 “But a good career can last 10-15 years and you’re never going to have every year where it’s plain sailing and you don’t have any difficulties. You’re going to have to fight, you’re going to have setbacks and last year was certainly a setback for myself on my career path. It’s behind us now and we look forward to the future and getting this club back to winning trophies, which is what it’s all about.”

we go.”