Ralf Rangnick offered Harry Maguire his full support and backed the Manchester United fans to follow suit after the defender was booed in midweek.
The centre-half has returned to club duties this week after teaming up with England during the international break. The Three Lions saw off Switzerland and the Ivory Coast, but Maguire was booed as the teams were read out before the win over the African nation on Tuesday night.
Maguire has been a pillar for Gareth Southgate, playing a crucial role in the teams that have reached the last four of the Wold Cup and the final of the Euros last summer. However his club form has copped major criticism with the defender's level of performance dropping noticeably.
Nevertheless, Southgate picked the United skipper, despite overlooking the likes of Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho. Rangnick backed his defender to do the business against Leicester City on Saturday night, telling reporters: “I know that Harry Maguire will receive the backing he deserves this afternoon. Harry is our captain, an excellent professional and I have never seen him give less than absolutely everything for the club.“
Maguire retained his usual starting berth in defence alongside Raphael Varane. Diogo Dalot and Luke Shaw to make up the backline as United continue their push towards the top four, but had to do so without Cristiano Ronaldo, who is missing through illness.
Maguire's England teammates rallied around him following the boos which came from sections of the crowd at Wembley. Harry Kane and Jordan Henderson, two leaders within the camp, both issued messages on social media defending their Three Lions colleague.
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Southgate himself slammed the actions aimed at Maguire, who he claims he never considered dropping when naming his squad. He cited the defender's experience as a major asset for England and questioned how productive the fan reaction was.
He said: “The reception was a joke, an absolute joke. I don't know how it benefits anybody. We're either all in it together or we're not. I imagine if you asked a few of them why they did it they probably wouldn't even be able to answer. It's mob mentality. One end of the ground you have a hardcore group trying to get his name sung — it wasn't everybody.
“Players will look at that and think, that could be me. It makes players not want to come. It has happened in the past with John Barnes. We need Harry to do well. We aren't going to win a World Cup with a load of players with three or four caps. That's never happened in the history of the game.”
