Harry Maguire has said that he has spoken to a ‘few’ members of the England squad, and wished them all the best in the World Cup. The Manchester United defender was a shock omission from Thomas Tuchel’s squad for the tournament.
Following news that he had been left out, Maguire didn’t hide his disappointment, releasing a statement on social media. “I was confident I could have played a major part this summer for my country after the season I’ve had,” he said.
“I’ve been left shocked and gutted by the decision. I’ve loved nothing more than putting that shirt on and representing my country over the years. I wish the players, all the best this summer.”
The World Cup is the second major competition in a row that the defender has missed after missing out on Euro 2024 with a calf injury. He was a regular for United when fit last season.
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He wasn’t the only high-profile player left out of the squad, United teammate Luke Shaw, Manchester City’s Phil Foden, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer and Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold all also failed to make the cut. But Maguire will be part of the World Cup in a different way, being part of Netflix’s The Rest is Football show with Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Micah Richards.
Appearing on the show on Monday, Gary Lineker asked Maguire if he’d spoken to members of the England squad. “Yeah, I’ve spoken to a few of them,” he said.
“They’re all, obviously, the camps go really well, and they’ve had two wins in the friendlies as well, so, it seems a positive camping, and, listen, I wish them all the best.
“I want them to do well, though, all my friends, obviously I’d love to have been out there and maybe not chatting to you on this podcast. But no, this is obviously the second best thing for me and really after that I’m getting to come over there and experience the atmosphere and joining the show.”
View 2 ImagesThomas Tuchel opted against taking Harry Maguire to the World Cup(Image: Getty Images)
England kick off their World Cup campaign on Wednesday night as they face Croatia at the Dallas Stadium (9pm kick-off). They then take on Ghana and Panama in their other Group L matches on Tuesday 23 June (9pm) and Saturday, 27 June (10pm).
Speaking ahead of the World Cup, former United captain Roy Keane delivered a blunt response to Maguire being left out of the squad. “Every time we do an England game, we speak a lot about players who have been left out or in terms of the squad are left out of the starting XI,” he said.
“But I think if you can’t get into a squad of 26, that’s on you. That is on the player, you’ve not done enough to convince that manager and there will always be uproar with England for players that are left out if they play for certain clubs but that’s on you.
“If you can’t make a squad of 26, that’s on you, don’t blame anyone else.”
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