Micah Richards said his advice was not to further criticise Maguire but to relieve him of pressure and help him recover his form
By Kehinde Okeowo
English defender and Man United captain, Harry Maguire, has been advised by cross-town club’s ex-defender Micah Richards to relinquish Uniteds’ captain armband to his teammate, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Richards gave the advice while writing his column for SportsMail, insisting that Maguire “needs help”.
He also said he did not write what he wrote to further chastise the defender but to relieve him of the pressure on him and help him rediscover his form.
He wrote: “Harry Maguire needs help in his role as Manchester United captain. This may sound like I’m joining the flood of criticism, but that is absolutely not the case.
“Questioning whether the armband could, in the short term, be passed to Cristiano Ronaldo is no reflection on Harry’s ability or character.”
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Richards went on to say he made the suggestion because of the level of criticism the former Foxes defender has faced, especially during their 1-0 loss to Atletico Madrid.
He added that he was able to relate to what he is going through because he faced a similar situation while playing for Aston Villa, saying such an experience could further affect his confidence.
“The situation, in my eyes, came to a head, on Tuesday against Atletico Madrid. I was in the studio, working for CBS, and when I heard some fans inside Old Trafford cheering as Harry was brought off, my heart sank.
“I’ve been in that position — some Aston Villa fans booed my name when it was read out at Villa Park once — and the feeling is like no other,” he added.