Roy Keane was candid, as is his wont, in his assessment of the criticism that Manchester United's captain Harry Maguire has received in recent times. Keane was complimentary of Maguire's performance for England in their match against the United States of America.
During England's drab World Cup match against the United States on Friday night at the Al-Bayt Stadium, Maguire was one of the better performers for England. He was one of the better performers for England. The 29-year-old started alongside John Stones as Gareth Southgate elected to keep the same starting XI that had defeated Iran in their first Group B match. Iran was the team's opponent in the first match of the group.
The Three Lions were unable to put on a repeat performance as they struggled to find their rhythm and maintain their intensity. Maguire, on the other hand, headed and kicked everything that came his way as England kept a clean sheet. This brought England closer to a progression to the knockout stages that was as certain as a rubber stamp.
After Maguire's well-publicized struggles in the English domestic league, Keane was joined in the ITV Sport studio by Gary Neville, who is also a fan favorite for Manchester United. The two of them discussed Maguire's situation. Keane said: "He's had a good performance tonight. The reason why he is getting in trouble is because he is not performing very well. That's football right there.
"Everyone feels sorry for Harry Maguire, for reasons nobody can quite explain. But he did a good job tonight, getting the fundamentals right and defending, which is as simple as it gets because that's his job."
Keane continued: "That will give him a little bit of confidence, with a clean sheet, but he's a big boy, he's got to accept the criticism, and we'll give him some praise because he's done well. That will give him a clean sheet of paper. In any case, this [the ability to play passes out from the back] is one of his strengths.
"He hasn't quite got the self-assurance that he needs to be successful at what he's good at. However, protecting himself is his top priority right now."
Neville shared the opinion of his former teammate from Old Trafford. He said: "He needed to get through the game without allowing a goal or giving one up in order to keep his clean sheet, and he also needed to avoid giving up a goal in order to keep his clean sheet. He was successful in heading everything in that second half, which will do wonders for his confidence."
