Manchester United’s Harry Maguire has been told by his former Hull team-mate Ahmed Elmohamady that he isn’t at the ‘level’ to captain the Red Devils.
The England international has been subject to plenty of criticism from all angles over the past few seasons, though his performances this season has only intensified that of late.
United currently sit in the fifth spot in the Premier League and are one point behind Arsenal, who have three games in hand.
The displays of the entire United team have not been good enough, both under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick, but a lot of the blame has been put on the shoulders of Maguire due to how he has struggled to lead his side out of trouble.
Speaking to beIN Sports, Elmohamady said: “Harry was with me in Hull City and, in my opinion, he doesn’t have the level to be the Manchester United captain.
“Man Utd need a player with a strong personality and I hope that the next manager will give the captaincy to Ronaldo if he stays.”
Maguire and Elmohamady spent three seasons together at Hull, but that didn’t stop the latter from holding back in his criticism of the former.
The former Aston Villa defender continued: “Ronaldo can handle this responsibility and pressure; however, Maguire can’t handle this pressure.
“So I think that the pressure he has by wearing the captain’s armband is affecting his performances.
“Maguire performed really well with Leicester, a team that competes to be in the top six of the Premier League and maybe this is his level.
“He doesn’t have the level to play for the biggest team in the history of England.”
Cristiano Ronaldo truly stepped up to the mark this weekend and proved that his heart was still with United, contrary to reports.
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The Portugal captain scored a hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening to secure an important 3-2 victory at Old Trafford.
The 37-year-old smashed home a thunderous opener from 25 yards to open the scoring in the 12th minute before tapping home from close range in the 38th – just three minutes after Harry Kane had equalised for Spurs.
Maguire then didn’t cover himself in glory in the 72nd minute when he converted into his own goal before Ronaldo rose highest to power home his third with just nine minutes left.
Questions had previously been raised of whether the forward was capable of spearheading United’s attack next season or if he would depart due to his desire to be competing in the Champions League.
And Red Devils hero Roy Keane believes that his former side must keep hold of Ronaldo and that the no.7 should be one of the first names on the team sheet under Rangnick’s successor.
He told Sky Sports: “You need Ronaldo in your team, he’s producing like that. Has Ronaldo been at his best this season? Probably not, he’s missed a number of chances but with Ronaldo in your team, you have a better chance of winning football matches.
“He’s got to get better players around him, it’s a decision with the manager. But I still think Ronaldo, a player of his age, playing week-in, week-out, he will produce for you. His general play, you could say, was pretty average, but football in big games, it’s about moments and Ronaldo’s done that for 15 seasons and he can do it for another season.”
