Manchester United defender Harry Maguire made an ill-advised comment when he visited rugby league team Wigan Warriors earlier this year. The 32-year-old met a host of Wigan players at the Brick Community Stadium ahead of the start of the Super League season.
Maguire was accompanied by United team-mates Mason Mount and Andre Onana, with the trio spending more than two hours with the rugby league players despite the fact they were only due to stay for 45 minutes. The three footballers were given a glimpse of a session involving passing, tackling and kicking, with Maguire and Mount even joining in with the final activity.
According to The Sun, the United stars were impressed with what they saw on the day and were blown away by the spirit and togetherness of the squad.
But Maguire risked upsetting all his Red Devils team-mates when he turned to one Wigan player and exclaimed: “We could do with a spirit half as good as yours.”
The comment, which has been labelled as a ‘joke’ may suggest that Maguire feels there is a lack of camaraderie between players at Old Trafford. The Red Devils have underwhelmed on the pitch for years and are a lowly 13th in the Premier League table with nine matches remaining.
United have come under fire at times this season, with former midfielder Roy Keane explaining on The Overlap after their 2-2 draw with Everton in February: “When we go back to the team and the recruitment and the players and showing a bit of fight and a bit of quality, a bit of speed in your play…”
He added: “I watched them at Everton on Saturday. People pretend to be closing people down. Talent is not enough. You keep going back to the talent, oh the talent, but talent is not enough.”
And Ian Wright stated: “You want someone who's going, ‘Lads, are you with me?’ Talent is not enough. Players have to look at themselves, look at the person in the mirror.”
However, United boss Ruben Amorim has suggested he’s happy with his team’s spirit this season.
“The spirit was there even with 10 men,” Amorim said in January after his side had overcome Arsenal in the third round of the FA Cup following the dismissal of Diogo Dalot.
“I think the connection between the team on the pitch and the fans outside was a really good thing to feel. I think we are improving on that and I think that is the base of everything.”