Jamie Carragher has told Harry Maguire that the Manchester United captain has "fallen short" in the Old Trafford dressing room.
The Liverpool legend has become the latest to criticise Maguire, who has been on the end of relentless scrutiny for his performances this season and faced pressure to hand over the armband to superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. But on Tuesday, the England defender was dealt a fresh blow; booed by his own supporters ahead of the Three Lions' routine 3-0 victory over Ivory Coast at Wembley, just as United fans did when Maguire was substituted during their Champions League loss to Atletico Madrid earlier this month.
As manager Gareth Southgate labelled the treatment "an absolute joke" and teammate Harry Kane launched a no-nonsense defence on social media, the 28-year-old's predicament prompted Carragher to offer his own analysis. Writing in a column for the Telegraph, the ex-Anfield stalwart explained: "Maguire's difficulty in turning it around at Old Trafford is his lack of authority in the United dressing room.
"Since last summer, Maguire has been looking over his shoulder amid a debate as to whether he or Cristiano Ronaldo should be captain. Rather than reassert his leadership, he has fallen short. That has affected his performances." On top of criticism regarding Maguire's leadership, Carragher also issued him with a warning for when the Red Devils eventually appoint their new manager.
The player-turned-pundit, echoing comments made by former United centre-back Rio Ferdinand regarding the under-fire skipper's capabilities, added: "Elite coaches are determined to play a high-line defence. Whoever takes over at Old Trafford this summer will do likewise.
"That does not suit Maguire, especially as there is so much malfunctioning in the United team he is regularly exposed. This will be a problem for him going forward. It is easier for a centre-back to hide their weakness in a team that defends deep. At the highest level, that is tougher and Maguire has become the easy scapegoat for a catalogue of United problems."
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Fortunately for Maguire, the international break provided some much-needed respite ahead of a crucial run-in which will determine whether or not the Red Devils will qualify for the Champions League next term. Arsenal icon Ian Wright has backed United's £80million man to turn his form around following the jeers, admitting on ITV : "We know, we saw, what the England fans are about.
"We saw them at the start of the Euro final, we saw them at the end of the final how they are. We're seeing Harry Maguire is getting a lot of stick and that comes from the fact that he plays for one of the biggest clubs in the world, so he's going to get that on top of it. The way Harry Maguire played, his pass for the second goal, that's what they should be focusing on, don't worry about those fans. When Harry Maguire scores in the World Cup, they'll be cheering!"
