England manager Gareth Southgate and players Jordan Henderson and Declan Rice have bit back at fans who booed defender Harry Maguire during last night’s 3-0 friendly win against Ivory Coast.
The match was won with goals from Ollie Watkins, Raheem Sterling and Tyrone Bings, but the win was overshadowed by a grim welcome by fans for Manchester United defender Maguire.
Southgate described the booing of Maguire as “an absolute joke” and appeared to place the blame on former players working as pundits and social media for Maguire’s rough treatment.
He said: “There are real England fans and some are influenced by whatever – social media or players that played previously who are influencing opinion. The club situation is obviously very difficult, but he’s in an England shirt.
“I remember decades ago a few players being booed in an England shirt and it’s never been acceptable to me. Fans should always get behind their team.”
Maguire’s inconsistent club form for Manchester United has been the centre of much discussion in the Sky Sports studios, with Gary Neville and Roy Keane both having criticised Maguire's performances in the past.
Southgate then stated such booing might make players think twice about appearing for England in friendlies.
“I don’t know how it benefits anybody. We’re either all in it together or we’re not. I imagine if you asked a few of them why they did it they probably wouldn’t even be able to answer. It’s mob mentality. One end of the ground you have a hardcore group trying to get his name sung, it wasn’t everybody.”
“Players will look at that and think that could be me. It makes players not want to come. It has happened in the past with John Barnes.
“We need Harry to do well. We aren’t going to win a World Cup with a load of players with three or four caps. That’s never happened in the history of the game.”
Roy Keane himself, speaking on ITV last night, said Southgate had made the issue worse by commenting on it.
“I think Gareth has made it a bigger story than what it is. Every player gets booed. There’s going to be idiots at football matches. England fans have got a lot of idiots.
“And if they’re going to boo Harry Maguire, I think Gareth could have easily said that it’s no big deal. He actually played well, just focus on that.”
Harry Maguire's team mates also joined Southgate in condemning the booing. Liverpool's Jordan Henderson and West Ham's Declan Rice both took to social media to condemn the fans’ treatment. Henderson said on Instagram.
“I can’t get my around what happened at Wembley tonight. Harry Maguire was been a colossus for England. Without him, the progress made at the last two tournaments wouldn’t not have been possible.To be booed at your home stadium, for no reason? What have we become? What happened tonight was just wrong. As someone who wants to win with England I feel fortunate to share a dressing room with him. We all feel the same!”
Declan Rice added on his personal Twitter account. “Total embarrassment from whoever booed tonight. Harry Maguire has been incredible every single time he’s put on the England shirt. Absolute nonsense now it’s becoming. Back your own players. Especially with a major tournament."
