Patrice Evra has expressed his delight at Manchester United defender Harry Maguire's recent upturn in form, with the centre-back impressing for England at the World Cup.
Maguire has endured a difficult campaign for Erik ten Hag's side so far this season - making just nine appearances in all competitions for the Reds. The club captain has only started three Premier League matches and some people questioned his inclusion in Gareth Southgate's squad for the World Cup.
However, the 29-year-old - who has recorded 51 caps for his country - has started every single game for the Three Lions in Qatar and has been impressive alongside Manchester City ace John Stones at the heart of defence. England conceded just two goals in the group stage, both of which came in the 6-2 triumph over Iran.
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Ex-Reds defender Evra has suggested that Maguire started to get 'bullied' for his performances at club level, adding that his strong showings for his country could benefit United for the remainder of the season.
"I'm so pleased with Maguire's upturn in form because at one point, he started to get bullied. It wasn't fair. Even when he was playing a good game for Man United, people would say he had a bad game and when he wasn't playing, if we conceded a goal it was because Maguire was in the stands smiling. Like, come on," Evra told Betfair.
"It shows the quality of the player, it shows how much he loves his country, it shows he can handle the pressure with England.
"With what's happening at Man United, people tried to apply the same pressure on him with England and it didn't work. I see many players who perform well for the club and they don't perform well for their country. But some players perform well for their country and they don't perform for their club.
"That's where Maguire is right now. This is good news for Man United because when he goes back to United, I hope he has the same attitude, the same discipline and to make sure when people talk, he thinks, 'I'm a good player, I'm a good centre-back, I know what I can do.'"
Evra also praised Southgate for giving the player confidence and admitted that Maguire should be grateful for the support he has received from his national team manager.
He added: "Southgate has given Maguire credit and confidence and maybe with Erik ten Hag, Maguire doesn't have the same confidence he had with the previous manager.
"Maybe his confidence is a little bit low. Southgate, the way he's protected him, Maguire should be saying 'thanks' to Southgate.
"Many managers would sometimes listen to the papers, listen to pundits and drop Maguire because he wasn't playing well for Man United. That would have been easy for Southgate, but he knows Maguire is a key player in the defence for England. That's why he can't drop him."
Maguire is expected to start for the Three Lions in the Round of 16 clash against Senegal on Sunday.
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