Jamie Carragher has told Harry Maguire to ‘come out swinging’ after the England centre-back faced more criticism following yesterday’s 3-3 draw against Germany.
The much-maligned Manchester United defender was at fault for Germany’s opening goal last night, giving away a penalty after a clumsy challenge on Jamal Musiala five minutes into the second-half. Another nervous performance put Southgate’s decision to keep the 29-year-old - who has been dropped by Erik ten Hag for his club - at the forefront of his plans under scrutiny again.
Maguire has endured a torrid 12-month spell in which the once dependable centre-back has allowed a dip in form to fester. But Carragher believes that while he has not been helped by toxic atmospheres at club and country, the former Leicester man needs to do more to get himself out of the rut.
The Sky Sports pundit drew on his experiences during his Liverpool career, in which the defender was often singled out for criticism and faced scrutiny from teammates. And the ex-Reds captain has told Maguire he needs to come out fighting instead of crumbling under the pressure.
“The first [experience of scrutiny] was during my time as a full-back, when the Liverpool supporters wanted me replaced with a version of Ashley Cole and the club tried to buy one every summer,” Carragher wrote in The Telegraph. “The second was after the 2006 World Cup when I started the following season out of form and it felt like every mistake was leading to a goal. Finally, towards the end of my career, there seemed to be a clamour for me to announce my retirement a couple of years before I finally did.
“Football is a team game, but my response on all those occasions was the same: ‘F*** everyone else. I’m going to put this right.’”
Carragher detailed rumours last season of Maguire’s Manchester United teammates claiming he is not good enough, and shared his personal reaction in fighting a similar problem during his early Liverpool days.
“Don’t believe me? Ask the ex-Liverpool defender and current Cameroon coach Rigobert Song,” the former Red added. “On the day I was called up to the England squad for the first time he openly laughed at me with some teammates. Twenty minutes later we were training and I approached the session like it was the Merseyside derby, the usual rules of no strong tackling abandoned as I relished every opportunity to demonstrate my competitiveness, especially when Song was nearby.
“A line had to be drawn. No-one was going to take the p*** out of me like that.”
READ NEXT
'Trent Alexander-Arnold, not so much' - Liverpool defender snub justified with Harry Maguire point
Liverpool sent blunt Moises Caicedo transfer verdict amid January rumours
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher launches Gareth Southgate defence after Trent Alexander-Arnold snub
Jude Bellingham 'already decided' on new club in Liverpool transfer blow
