The Manchester United defender will not take part in upcoming Nations League matches after initially being called in
The FA has announced that Gareth Southgate has dropped Harry Maguire from the latest England squad after the Manchester United star was found guilty of charges of aggravated assault, resisting arrest, and repeated attempts of bribery on Tuesday.
Maguire’s sentencing came just hours after he was initially named to England’s latest squad for September’s Nations League games against Iceland and Denmark, with Southgate explaining that he had spoken to Maguire and was working on what information he was presented.
But Maguire was subsequently dropped after being handed a 21-month suspended prison sentence after an incident in Greece last week, with the defender, his brother Joe Maguire and their friend Christopher Sharman all found guilty after a trial in Syros, Greece.
Following the sentence, Maguire maintained his innocence and said he is determined to clear his name, as the defender released a statement saying that he will appeal the sentence.
Manchester United have also backed their defender as the club was critical of the prosecution service who gave Maguire’s team little time to work on a defence.
In the wake of Tuesday’s verdict, Southgate has reversed his original decision and dropped Maguire from the squad for this next round of fixtures.
“In light of this evening’s developments, I can confirm I have withdrawn Harry Maguire from the England squad for the matches against Iceland and Denmark,” Southgate said in a statement.
“As I said earlier today, I reserved the right to review the situation. Having spoken to Manchester United and the player, I have made this decision in the best interests of all parties and with consideration of the impact on our preparations for next week.”
Maguire has been a regular for England since making his international breakthrough in 2017, making a total of 23 appearances for the Three Lions in 2018 and 2019.
He was a member of England’s 2018 World Cup squad, as the then-Leicester defender scored against Sweden as part of the team’s fourth-place run.
With Maguire’s departure, Southgate will now rely on Eric Dier, Joe Gomez, Michael Keane and Tyrone Mings as centre-back options for the upcoming matches.
England are set to face off with Iceland in Reykjavik on September 5 before travelling to Copenhagen to take on Denmark three days later.
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