Roy Keane makes accusation against Gareth Southgate after Harry Maguire boo-gate
Roy Keane has criticised England boss Gareth Southgate’s handling of the Harry Maguire situation after the defender was booed at Wembley on Tuesday night.
Manchester United captain Maguire was greeted by a smattering of boos at Wembley against Ivory Coast. The centre-back had received a similar reaction on Saturday when he was named on the bench against Switzerland.
There were even some jeers during his first few touches of the ball in the 3-0 win against 10-man Ivory Coast. A match in which Maguire did not put a foot wrong albeit against a team that looked like a shadow of the side that lost 2-1 to France.
It was a reaction which baffled Jordan Henderson.
“What have we become? What happened tonight was just wrong,” said the Liverpool man.
While Southgate branded the boos “an absolute joke”.
ITV pundit Keane, who has been one of the most vocal critics of Maguire this season, put a different slant on the affair.
“I think Gareth has made it a bigger story than what it is. Every player gets booed. There’s going to be idiots at football matches. England fans have got a lot of idiots,” He told ITV.
“And if they’re going to boo Harry Maguire, I think Gareth could have easily said that it’s no big deal. He actually played well, just focus on that.”
Keane then accused Southgate of double standards and said he was “picking and choosing” when to defend his players.
Maguire unruffled
“I think he’s made a bigger story than what it is. And Gareth is almost picking and choosing when to support his players. Raheem Sterling had a bust-up two or three years ago, he was bombed out of the squad. He’s left other players out,” added Keane.
“I remember when Harry was sent off [in October 2020] against Denmark. He didn’t really support him – I thought – when he was walking off the pitch.
“So I think Gareth’s made a bigger story than what it is. Just get on with the game. He played well! And he’ll get fans back onside by his performances, not by people [like Southgate] reacting to a few boos or social media. Forget about it.
“Be big enough and man enough just to get on with the game. And he played well – that’s the most important thing.”
Maguire seemed unruffled by the Wembley criticism and on Wednesday morning, tweeted: “Enjoyable week playing for my country.”
READ MORE: England ratings: Midfield maestro gives Southgate huge headache; Kane replacement takes his chance
The post Roy Keane makes accusation against Gareth Southgate after Harry Maguire boo-gate appeared first on TEAMtalk.