‘Slack the guy a little’: Manchester United captain Harry Maguire defends himself after criticism from Roy Keane

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Former Aston Villa and England striker Gabby Agbonlahor has doubled down on his criticism of former Manchester United captain Roy Keane.

Keane made headlines on Friday night after his scathing criticism of Harry Maguire’s goal celebration in England’s 5-0 win over Albania at Wembley Stadium.

Maguire has been criticized for his recent performances for Manchester United, with the Reds currently only having one win in their last six Premier League games.

Former United hero Keane, in his role as an expert on Sky Sports, has been one of Maguire’s harshest criticisms and it spilled over into international football on Friday night.

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Maguire led England to a 1-0 lead in their penultimate World Cup qualifying game and raised his ears in celebration, apparently in response to criticism he received for his performance at club level.

Keane, working as an expert for ITV’s coverage of the match, called Maguire “embarrassing”, leading Agbonlahor to call the former Ireland international a “bully”.

And the 35-year-old has now backed his criticism of Keane, while posting a stern defense from Maguire.

“The celebration, for me, what Maguire should have done is his afterthought,” Agbonlahor told TalkSPORT.

“If he said: ‘So what? I raised my hand to celebrate a goal for my country. I had criticism, this is the first game I have had since the last Manchester United game where I was poor. ‘

“All he can do is go out there and put in a good performance and that’s what he did. Yes, it was against Albania. Yes, it was against San Marino in the last game but he regains his confidence and then game against Watford this weekend he will be there and hopefully have a good game and keep his clean sheet.

“I just feel with some of the comments, every time Roy Keane speaks, everyone gets on the bandwagon.

“He was ’embarrassing’, he was a ‘shame’ He’s a footballer. Everyone talks quickly about mental health, but shouldn’t footballers who play now go through it?

“Do you think Harry Maguire doesn’t mind the game and think, ‘Why am I beaten on social media? I scored a goal for my country.’

Maguire played for England this summer as the Three Lions were on the verge of winning the European Championships.

As such, Agbonlahor believes critics of Maguire need to “give the guy a little slack”, especially after he scores a goal for his country.

“He probably trains hard, works hard and I think we quickly forget what he did in Euros,” added Agbonlahor.

“It’s like it’s gone now, we’ve made it to the final, but he was exceptional. Let the guy slack a little.

“I’ve seen a lot of ex-players come out now and say they totally agree Roy has been too hard on him. Give the guy a chance.

“I’m not saying he shouldn’t be criticized. Of course he should if he doesn’t have a good game, but when you score a goal, give the guy a break.

“It’s that simple.”

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