Maguire focused on bid for survival

SELHURST PARK noon, tomorrow CRYSTAL PALACE v HULL CITY HULL defender Harry Maguire has shelved all contract talk until the club’s Premier League survival battle has been decided.

Centre-half Maguire, 24, who has a year left to run on his current deal, has been linked with a host of Premier League clubs, while the Tigers have two games left in their bid to retain their top-flight status.

Hull slipped back into the drop zone following last week’s home defeat to Sunderland and travel to relegation rivals Crystal Palace tomorrow.

Marco Silva’s side must clinch their first league win on the road since August and hope Swansea have dropped points at Sunderland 24 hours earlier in order to climb out of the bottom three.

“Obviously every footballer wants to be playing in the Premier League, myself included,” said Maguire, reported to be on the radar of Tottenham, Liverpool, West Ham and Newcastle among others.

“It’s probably the greatest league in the world at the moment but I’m totally focused on Hull City staying in the Premier League, so new contracts etc - I’ll be discussing those at the end of the season when the football has finished.

“It’s massive for me. I’ve worked all year to keep this club in the Premier League and hopefully this year we can be there fighting again.”

Maguire, who signed a threeyear deal when completing a £2.5million move to Hull from Sheffield United in July 2014, has been instrumental in his side’s brave bid to escape relegation under Silva.

His performances raised expectations of an England callup in March and his future is likely to depend on whether Hull can extend their latest Premier League adventure beyond one season.

Maguire believes the survival battle could have one more sting in its tail.

“I definitely think there’s a twist yet,” he added.

“If you look before the weekend we were in the driving seat and not many would have predicted the results over the weekend, so who says there’s not going to be another twist and turn?”