Manchester United suffer blow as England star signs bumper new deal


Leicester City have announced via their official website that centre-back Harry Maguire has signed a new contract at the club, extending his existing deal until 2023.

The defender starred for England at the World Cup over the summer and was believed to be a top target for Manchester United, though the Red Devils refused to match Leicester’s asking price for the 25-year-old.

Maguire only signed for Leicester in 2017 from Hull for a fee thought to be in the region of £15m but that quickly proved to be money well spent for a player that would go on to win the club’s Player of the Year award last season.

His stock was further on the rise following an impressive showing in Russia for the national side, establishing himself as Gareth Southgate’s first choice on the left of a back three and drawing widespread acclaim.

Jose Mourinho, who made it known that he had handed over a list of centre-back targets to the board at United over the summer, was thought to have named Maguire among said wishlist but the club were perturbed by the Foxes’ valuation, believed to be well in excess of £50m.

Maguire has become renowned not only for his threat from set pieces over the past couple of seasons, having had a direct hand in six league goals last season, and is already off the mark this time around too. His ability to play out from the back was evident in the summer too, and as well as scoring and registering an assist at the World Cup, the centre-back completed 88.8% of his passes - a figure that has risen ever so slightly so far this season to 88.9%.

 

 

He has now committed his future to Leicester for the foreseeable future, signing a five-year deal which will see his wages rise substantially, and the defender stated: “Ever since I came to this Club, I’ve always reiterated how good they’ve been to me. They gave me an opportunity to play in the Premier League and built a great platform for me to go and perform at the World Cup, so I thank them a lot. I owe them a lot and I’m looking forward to the future.”