Harry Maguire (30) is finally leaving Manchester United.
On the 9th (KST), Rory Whitwell, a Man Utd journalist for British media outlet The Athletic, reported that ‘Man Utd have agreed a £30m fee with West Ham for Maguire. Personal terms are not expected to be an issue’.
‘Maguire wanted to stay at United, but a move to a (much reduced) starting role proved necessary. He fears it will have a detrimental effect on his England career and is keen to revive his career at West Ham.
Fabrizio Romano, one of the most authoritative voices in the European transfer market, also wrote on social media: ‘West Ham are awaiting official approval to discuss personal terms with Maguire. The Hammers have accepted a £30m transfer fee and are keen to clarify details, including payment terms. Romano had earlier said: ‘West Ham have reached an agreement in principle with Manchester United for the transfer of Maguire. The transfer fee is £30m. Discussions are still ongoing. The structure of the deal is a key issue but the transfer fee has been agreed. Personal terms will also be discussed shortly.
Initially, Maguire’s move to West Ham seemed unlikely. ‘West Ham have offered £60m for Maguire and Scott McTominay,’ The Athletic reported on 8 August. Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News was more specific. “West Ham have offered £30m each for McTominay and Maguire,” Luckhurst said. United rejected the offer. ‘United have rejected both bids for both players,’ Luckhurst said. Romano also announced on social media that ‘United have rejected an offer for McTominay. Negotiations continue for Maguire, but there is no progress”.
United are reportedly looking for a higher transfer fee. According to the Times, United want £35 million for Maguire.
However, the Red Devils have accepted West Ham’s initial offer in full. On the day that United and West Ham reached an agreement, Maguire was spotted at United training, leaving fans confused. Fans who have turned their backs on Maguire have also raised questions on social media. ‘Why is he training when he’s been told to pack his bags and meet Moyes,’ and ‘I need a lift to London. I hope the deal is done,” “I admire the professionalism of Maguire training with United,” “I hope he says goodbye,” and more.
Maguire has also reportedly spoken to West Ham boss David Moyes on the phone. However, there is a reason why Maguire is training with United. Only personal terms have yet to be agreed. ‘West Ham are in talks (with Maguire) over wages, which could be a stumbling block (to a deal),’ says The Sun. Maguire received a pay rise after United qualified for the Champions League. ‘We need to come to an agreement that is acceptable to all parties, including United,’ he explained. However, the British media is expecting an agreement to be reached sooner rather than later. He should have no problem pulling on a West Ham shirt.
Maguire was a revelation for the Hammers, joining from Leicester City in 2019 for a record fee of £80m, the highest ever for a defender. He played at the highest level. He looked outstanding as the nucleus of the United defence.
However, Maguire’s success was short-lived. Suddenly, his form plummeted, and he fell to the bottom of the table. His worst run of form followed, and he was fast becoming an afterthought. The arrival of Rafael Varane and Lisandro Martinez ahead of the 2022-2023 season further diminished his position. Ten Haag favoured the experienced duo of Varane and his former Ajax protégé Martinez. Even when they were knocked out with injuries, Maguire was not given a chance. Ten Haag opted to play Viktor Lindelof at number three, or even left-back Luke Shaw at centre-back. Maguire made just 16 appearances in the English Premier League in the 2022-2023 season. Of those, only eight were starts.
To make matters worse, there were rumours of a feud off the pitch. At one point, there were rumours of a faction within the squad over the captain’s armband with Cristiano Ronaldo. Neither his performances nor his leadership proved up to the task.
Ultimately, United stripped Maguire of the captaincy last month. In a statement on their official website, the club said: “We would like to thank Maguire for all his dedication as captain over the past three and a half years. The manager will speak to the players and announce a new captain in due course.
Maguire expressed his disappointment, writing on the club’s website: “After speaking to the manager today, he informed me that he will be changing the captaincy. He explained the reasons to me and whilst I am personally very disappointed, I will continue to do my best to pull on the Manchester United shirt,” he said on the club’s website. “I would like to thank the United fans for their tremendous support during my time in the captain’s armband,” he added. “It has been a great honour to lead United from the day I took over as captain three and a half years ago. It has been one of the proudest moments of my career so far. I consider it one of the greatest honours in club football. I have done everything I could to help United succeed both on and off the pitch,” he said. “I will always be grateful to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer for entrusting me with the captaincy and I wish whoever takes over the captaincy now every success, which I will support wholeheartedly.”
United’s decision effectively means they have parted company with Maguire. United were keen to get rid of Maguire early on. Instead, they wanted to sign Kim Min-jae, but the lack of a deal for Maguire and the club’s ownership issues prevented them from doing so. In the end, Kim opted to join Bayern Munich.
Maguire is still a competitive player for the England national team. However, his high price tag has deterred teams from making offers. Maguire’s weekly wages were in the region of $400 million. While he is strong in the air, he struggles to penetrate quickly, so few clubs are willing to spend big on him. West Ham, Aston Villa, Chelsea, and Tottenham are among those interested, with West Ham being particularly active. The Hammers sold Declan Rice to Arsenal for a whopping £105m this summer, and they’ve got a bullet. Moyes wanted Maguire, and after reaching Europe once again last season by winning the Europa League, the Hammers were looking for a leader to replace Rice at the heart of the defence and identified Maguire. In Moyes’ style of football, which emphasises height, Maguire could have a resurgence. This is because Maguire is still a useful player under Gareth Southgate. According to the Daily Mail, Moyes has reportedly informed Maguire of his plans to give him the captaincy, a role previously held by Rice.바카라
Now that he’s out of the picture, United have begun their search for a replacement. A list of potential new centre-backs has been released. The main names are Van Gaal (Bayern), Jean-Claude Todivo (Nice) and Edmond Topsova (Leverkusen). Pavard was pushed aside by the arrival of ‘monster’ Kim Min-jae. Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel has Kim Min-jae-Matthijs de Ligt in mind as his starting centre-back combination for the new season. Pavard and Dayo Upamecano are considered back-ups. However, Pavard is considered the first-choice centre-back for the French national team. Raphael Varane, who also plays centre-back with the French national team, is also at United and could adapt quickly if he were to make the move.
Todibo spent the 2018-19 season in Barcelona’s shirt, and has been out on loan since the following season. Schalke in Germany, Benfica in Portugal, and Nice in France. At Nice, he was the perfect first-choice centre-back. For the second consecutive season, he played more than 40 games. Last season, he played 46 games. Topsova is a resource that Tottenham are currently targeting. Having signed centre-back Mickey van der Vaart from Wolfsburg in Germany, Tottenham are also looking to add Topsova, who has insane physicality at 1.94m. Topsoba has been praised for his ball-handling skills and long passes, including his ability to compete for aerial balls.