Harry Maguire has revealed he has been stripped of the Manchester United captaincy by Erik ten Hag. The England defender retained the armband last season despite losing his first-choice status and the move comes with United willing to listen to offers for the 30-year-old.
West Ham are interested in Maguire but their proposal of a loan, potentially with an option to buy, is unlikely to appeal to United at this stage and wages make the deal difficult. Maguire received a considerable salary increase, in line with the rest of the squad, as a result of United qualifying for the Champions League and that means it is more challenging to find a new club.
It is understood Maguire has given mixed messages to West Ham regarding a readiness to join but he will need regular games to stand a chance of retaining his England place. He will leave only for what he considers the right club and is is ready to stay and fight for his place if he concludes that is the best option.
“After discussions with the manager today he has informed me he is changing captain,” Maguire tweeted. “He outlined his reasons to me and whilst I’m personally extremely disappointed, I will continue to give my all every time I wear the shirt. So I wanted to say a massive thank you to the Manchester United fans for all their brilliant support whilst I’ve been wearing the armband.
“Since the day I took on the role, three and half years ago, it’s been a huge privilege to lead Manchester United and one of the proudest moments of my career to date. It’s one of the greatest honours in club football. I’ve done everything I possibly could to help United be successful – on and off the field. I will always be grateful to Ole Gunnar Solskjær for first giving me the responsibility and I wish whoever now takes it on every success and they will have my full support.”
In a statement on the United website the club said: “Everyone at Manchester United thanks Harry for his contribution as captain over the past three-and-a-half years. The manager will announce the new captain in due course, after he has informed the players.”
Ten Hag hopes to sell Maguire and other fringe players to increase the money available for signings. Mason Mount has joined from Chelsea for an initial £55m, which amounts to almost half his £120m budget. United are poised to complete an initial €50m (£42.9m) move for the Internazionale goalkeeper André Onana, who is due to travel to Manchester once a final check on payment terms has been completed. Ten Hag has spoken to Onana over the past couple of days to confirm the deal will go ahead.
The manager also wants a striker and is interested in Atalanta’s Rasmus Højlund. If Maguire leaves Ten Hag may also try to sign another centre-half.
Maguire, bought by United from Leicester for £80m in August 2019, started only eight Premier League games last season, including on the final day after qualification for the Champions League had been secured. Bruno Fernandes was the regular captain and is expected to be confirmed as Maguire’s successor.
