It’s long been believed that Erik ten Hag saw Harry Maguire as surplus to requirements at Man United.
Dropping him from the starting XI would’ve been a bitter pill for the centre-back to swallow, without then having the captaincy taken off of him.
Though it’s not clear if the Dutchman has explicitly told the England international that his Old Trafford career is over, his actions speak louder than words.
To that end, you would’ve thought that the Red Devils would be doing all that they can to smooth the path for him to move on.
However, their dilly-dallying could come back to bite them, after The Telegraph (subscription required) noted that the most interested party for Maguire’s services, West Ham United, are now ready to walk away from the deal because of the time it’s taking for United to broker an agreeable exit arrangement with the defender.
The issue appears to be over the money that Maguire expects to have his contract terminated with his current employers, but if it takes too much longer to resolve, both parties won’t need to worry as the player will remain as a Man United player with just over a fortnight until the window closes.
It’s not thought that any other club has shown as much interest in the player as the Hammers, so Maguire does run the very real risk of spending at least another half season on the sidelines at the Theatre of Dreams.