MAGS WILL PROVE THE ‘SO-CALLED’ EXPERTS WRONG

Ole never thought of taking armband from Harry and backs him to hit form

MANCHESTER UNITED boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has backed Harry Maguire to return to form and never considered taking the captaincy off him.

Maguire was criticised by former United skipper Roy Keane for the manner of his England goal celebration in their 5-0 World Cup qualfier win over Albania at Wembley.

Keane (inset) branded Maguire “embarrassing” for cupping his hands to his ears after scoring (right), claiming the goal did not exonerate him from being a “disgrace” for United in recent weeks.

Some Red Devils fans have called for Maguire to be stripped of the captaincy,

claiming the 28-yearold is not a true leader, with Cristiano Ronaldo and David de Gea potential replacements.

But Solskjaer hit back at Maguire’s detractors and said the centre-back, despite his current crisis of confidence, will keep the armband and hailed his impact on and off the pitch.

“I’ve not considered taking the captain’s armband away from him,” said Solskjaer.

“Harry’s been an absolute stalwart for us, on and off the pitch, since he came here.

“His family, his club, we’re all very happy with him and we back him. He’s such a top professional.

“He’s going to prove his critics wrong. The so-called ‘experts’, they have their opinions and that’s their job, to give their opinions.

“But that’s not something we have to worry too much about. As an example of a United player, Harry is always there for his team and his country.” Despite Maguire having been singled out for his part in United’s current crisis, Solskjaer said the blame needed to be shared by the entire squad, not one individual.

“As a team, we’ve not performed at the standard we know we can do and the levels we need to be at,” said Solskjaer, ahead of today’s trip to Watford.

“Harry, as Gareth Southgate rightly said, is not one to hide on the treatment table or find any excuse to sit out games.

“Harry is a top professional, who wants to be there for the manager every single time, and he trains really well.

“This week, going away, scoring for his country, will help his form and his confidence.”

After United’s 2-0 defeat to

Manchester City in the Premier League a fortnight ago, Solskjaer gave his players a week off and returned to his native Norway himself, although he admitted he could not switch off.

“You can’t break off, you never do,” added Solskjaer. “We live and breathe football. You try to switch your phone off for a few hours at least and spend time with your family.

“But you watch your players on the international stage, you analyse your own games, and go through them in detail.

“We have worked hard on a few priorities.

“The staff are incredible, they work 24/7 to improve the state of the team, and when we came back on Monday, everyone was ready to have a good week.”