HARRY BACK TO FACE MUSIC
Maguire out of jail, now for talks with Solskjaer and Southgate
HARRY MAGUIRE is flying back to the UK after two nights in prison and yesterday morning in court where he was accused of assaulting local police officers during an altercation on the Greek holiday island of Mykonos.
The £80 million Manchester United and England defender will return to uncomfortable talks with his club manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and England boss Gareth Southgate, who has to decide whether to pick the defender for his squad on Tuesday, when Maguire’s case will be being heard in court after it was adjourned yesterday. Maguire is not required to attend in court but accusations of verbal abuse and physical violence against police officers will be considered.
One source has said that an initial accusation of bribery has now been dropped, though last night it remained unclear. Maguire denied all the allegations yesterday, though he made a statement of apology to the court.
According to Greek media, Maguire became involved when his sister, Daisy, 20, was assaulted and injured with a sharp object as a group of English youths abused Maguire and his group. It is also understood that the police attending ‘were dressed in plain clothes’ and not easily identifiable as officers. Maguire, along with his two
co-accused, were transferred on Friday evening from Mykonos, where the altercation took place, to nearby island Syros, where they spent a second night in custody.
Maguire had been staying on Mykonos with fiancee Fern Hawkins on a family holiday with his siblings and their partners.
Maguire and his co-accused were visited by lawyers Eleni Karygianni and Konstantinos Darivas yesterday morning before lawyers from Athens, instructed by Manchester United, arrived to take charge of the case.
At 11 o’clock yesterday, the three accused were escorted by police vehicles to the Court House of Syros, where the state prosecutor heard their apologies and the fact that they denied the charges. The case was adjourned and will now be considered on Tuesday, just when Southgate is announcing whether Maguire is part of the squad for Iceland and Denmark.
Maguire faces an agonising wait while Greek authorities consider the case and will have to explain to Solskjaer and Southgate the context for the dispute, which led to police accusing him of assaulting them.
With Southgate meeting media on Tuesday to announce his squad, it places the manager in an invidious position: if he names Maguire on the basis that nothing has yet been proven, he risks the court case embarrassing him if fresh details emerged. But to drop him would appear to be prejudging the issue. A police statement issued on Friday said: ‘Patrolling police officers intervened in a dispute between citizens. However, three foreigners involved in the incident turned against them, insulting and hitting a police officer with fists.
‘The three foreigners were taken to the Mykonos Police Station, where, upon their arrival, they strongly resisted [arrest], pushing and beating three police officers. One of the detainees then tried to offer money so the trial against them would not go ahead.’
A United statement said: ‘Following the appearance in court today we note the adjournment of the case to allow the legal team to consider the case file. Harry has pleaded not guilty to the charges. It would be inappropriate for the player or club to comment.’