Erik ten Hag sends brutal message to Harry Maguire as £30m transfer to West Ham hangs in the balance
ERIK TEN HAG has told Harry Maguire: ‘If you don’t want to fight for your place then go’.
Maguire’s £30million switch from Manchester United to West Ham has stalled on personal terms.
He has a deal in place that cuts his weekly wages from £190,000 to £120,000, with United offering him a £6million pay-off to help offset the shortfall over his contract.
Still there is no agreement — although Maguire has looked a dispirited figure since having the captaincy taken off him earlier this summer.
But now manager Ten Hag has demanded the player commits fully to United or walks out of the door.
Ten Hag said: “For Harry, that is just how I described it. He has to fight for his place.
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“He has the ability to be a top-class centre-back and he is the best for England so why shouldn’t he be the best for us — but he has to prove it.
“When he is not confident enough to fight then he has to go. Then he has to make a decision but I’m happy with him.”
Maguire is in the squad for tonight’s Premier League opener at home to Wolves.
The pre-season proved that Ten Hag can field two strong sides when they twice played on consecutive days.
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And the boss wants those not in tonight’s starting line-up to challenge themselves to get in that regular starting XI.
He said: “We don’t have a squad with 11 players, and the last year proved definitely we need all the players.
“So that means you need some high-level players who are maybe not starting but that can change so there is an internal competition — everyone has to fight for his place.
“Every player, when they are good, will get their games but no one can play all the games and finally you find out what is the best team.
“In the squad now all the positions are double and every player has the perspective to fight for his place.
“It is up to the players if they have game time or less.”
One player who will not be figuring tonight is £72m new striker Rasmus Hojlund, who is still getting fit after suffering a slight injury in pre-season with his now former club Atalanta.
For Harry, that is just how I described it. He has to fight for his place.
Erik ten Hag
Ten Hag said: “We are not in a rush. We know without him we have a strong team and the position is covered.
“It is about him getting to the right fitness level and then we have to integrate him in training and bring him in for the games.
"So we take our time. It is not about winning in this moment, it is about winning in the long term.”
Ten Hag believes United are ready for winning as well.
Last season the Red Devils qualified for the Champions League after finishing third, won their first trophy in six years with the Carabao Cup and reached the FA Cup final.
And Ten Hag, who took over in July 2022, said: “We couldn’t expect this, where we are now, when we look back a year.
“We showed we could beat all the good teams, the best teams in the world.
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“We have a really good foundation and now we have to work on it and do it consistently.
“If we work well, with the right plan and efforts in place and we work with consistency, we will be more successful — and we can make that step.”