Exclusive: Pundit blames Man United star’s poor form on one major Liverpool transfer decision
Harry Maguire's time at Manchester United has gone from bad to worse despite being the Premier League's most expensive defender.
The England international, who was also chosen captain of the Red Devils by former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, has battled to win over fans.
A string of disappointing performances has made the former Leicester City defender an obvious target for criticism, and while analyst and former Liverpool player Stan Collymore does not agree with all of the criticism, he does believe one of his former club’s most major additions didn’t help.
In an exclusive interview regarding why Maguire has lost his place in Erik ten Hag’s team to new arrival Lisandro Martinez, Collymore said: “Liverpool’s signing of Virgil Van Dijk for about £75 million did not assist Maguire either.” Especially given how successful his deal has been, but Liverpool set the bar very high at the time, allowing Leicester City to dig their heels in and demand the same kind of eye-watering amount for Harry Maguire.
“Had Van Dijk not moved to Anfield, Maguire would have probably left Leicester City for closer to £40 million, and the pressure on him would have been significantly less, and his price tag, which he had no control over, became the rod with which the media and certain supporters beat him.”
Maguire, who has just over two years left on his contract at Old Trafford, has appeared in 149 appearances in all competitions since joining the 20-time league winners from Leicester City in 2019 for an eye-watering £78.3 million.
