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Manchester United fans are urging Harry Maguire to leave after he confirmed that Erik ten Hag has stripped him of the club's captaincy.
Maguire sent out a long-worded statement on his Twitter account confirming he was no longer United captain. He had been the Red Devils' skipper since January 2020 when he was appointed in the role by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
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However, the 30-year-old's time with the armband has been a topsy-turvy one that has coincided with a poor performance from Manchester United as a collective. The England international's past season was full of issues stemming from a lack of game time that saw Bruno Fernandes often take the captaincy.
Harry Maguire made 31 appearances across competitions last season but only started on 16 occasions. He helped his side keep 17 clean sheets but Ten Hag preferred the defensive duo of Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez.
Ten Hag's ruthless decision to strip Maguire of the captaincy has led to further doubts growing over his future at Old Trafford. He has two years left on his contract and is now considering his options, per Sky Sports.
West Ham United are reportedly interested in signing Maguire, per BBC Sport. He may now be more inclined to depart Manchester United. He knows that game time is vital ahead of next year's potential European Championships campaign with England.
Red Devils fans are now keen to see Maguire leave after seeing him have the armband taken off him. One fan wants him to head to West Ham:
"Thank you for the occasional times where you played well. Now sod off to Wet Sham. I hear they're looking for a captain."
Another fan thinks Ten Hag's plan to sell Maguire is in motion:
"1 Step done to be sold."
Here's how Twitter reacted to the English defender's announcement that he is no longer captain:
Erik ten Hag was urged to strip Harry Maguire of the Manchester United captaincy in January
Former Manchester United defender Paul Parker urged Ten Hag to make Bruno Fernandes permanent captain in January. The Portuguese midfielder was vice-captain to Maguire throughout last season.
However, Fernandes mostly wore the armband during the campaign as he was a constant fixture in Ten Hag's starting lineup while Maguire wasn't. Many now expect the 28-year-old to be appointed as the Red Devils' new skipper.
Parker wanted Ten Hag to make the decision in January as he felt that it was a miserable situation seeing Maguire still as captain despite his lack of game time. He said (via Manchester Evening News):
“Honestly, the situation with Harry Maguire is embarrassing now. The way he is taking away the armband from Bruno Fernandes is miserable."
Fernandes was an ever-present for Ten Hag last season, featuring 59 times across competitions. He showed his leadership qualities throughout the campaign and Parker reckoned his temporary stint as captain should have been made permanent:
“He should never do that and Erik ten Hag needs to take the decision now to take away the armband from Maguire for good.”
Harry Maguire's time as captain of Manchester United is not one many of the club's fans will look back on fondly. It came during a dismal period for the 13-time Premier League champions as they struggled for trophy success.
