The abuse my son receives is disgraceful: Maguire's mum speaks

 Manchester United defender Harry Maguire

Ever since his move from Leicester City to Manchester United, England centre-back Harry Maguire has been the centre of attention for both club and country.

He was rock solid during his first season at Old Trafford but with time, a series of errors made him the butt of jokes. Never mind his impressive displays for England in the 2018 World Cup and the Euro 2020 final.

His dip in form made United manager Erik Ten Hag strip him of captaincy at the start of the season. He was no longer a regular starter, usurped by the no-nonsense Lisandro Martinez and World Cup winner Raphael Varane.

Maguire’s mum Zoe has now come out to defend her son over what she termed as disgraceful behavior by some football fans.

This was after England’s win over Scotland at Hampden Park where once again, Maguire was targeted by fans.

“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 [at Hampden] 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’,” she wrote.

Zoe said she is proud of how her son is handling the criticism thrown his way but would not wish the same on any player breaking through the ranks.

“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.

“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,” she added.

England Manager Gareth Southgate, on his part, slammed the treatment of Maguire saying it was beyond anything he had ever seen.

He lauded the centreback as one of his key players, saying he has been integral to the recent success of the Three Lions.

“There has been ridiculous treatment of him for a long period of time - It’s a joke. I’ve never known a player treated the way he is by our own pundits. It’s beyond anything I’ve ever seen.

"He's been an absolute stalwart for us in the second most successful team for decades. He's been an absolute key part of that,” said Southgate.