Harry Maguire looks set to remain as Manchester United captain next season, despite being found guilty and given a suspended sentence for assaulting and attempting to bribe police in Mykonos, Greece.
The 28-year-old consequently lost his spot in the England team for next month’s international fixtures hours after Gareth Southgate had initially included him in the squad to face Iceland and Denmark.
It, however, appears that Manchester United would not take such drastic actions, having initially stated on Tuesday that their player would appeal the verdict and ”continues to strongly assert his innocence.”
Maguire and his drinking pals racked up bar bills of up to £63,000 in five hours and faced a public backlash over his actions in a foreign country, with many fans calling for the former Leicester City man to be stripped off the Manchester United captaincy.
This does not, however, look likely and the Red Devils are expected to stick by their skipper, having done so in the past when players faced public outcry over their conduct, with Sir Alex Ferguson unequivocally backing Eric Cantona after he was banned for eight months for his infamous ‘kung fu kick’ on a Crystal Palace fan in the stands, while Roy Keane and Rio Ferdinand also received support during their trying times.
Harry Maguire posts cryptic message, plans to appeal
A day after the guilty verdict was returned in Greece, Harry Maguire took to his Instagram story to post a cryptic message relating to the incident, quoting religious figure Buddha while writing: ”Three things cannot long be hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth.”
The defender is expected to report back to Old Trafford on September 2 as Manchester United begin preparations for the start of a new Premier League season which kicks off on September 12.
Harry Maguire’s lawyers are in the process of appealing the decision and his brother has said that all the charges are fabricated and they have evidence to support this, although the appeal process could be dragged on across several months.
