Troy Deeney claims Harry Maguire's agent rang him up after criticising his leadership skills

Troy Deeney has claimed that Harry Maguire’s agent phoned him after he criticised the Manchester United defender on the radio.

Ever since Maguire made the move to Old Trafford from Leicester City in a deal with £80 million, the centre-back’s every move has been heavily scrutinised.

According to former Watford striker Deeney, Maguire’s agent Kenneth Shepherd gave him a call after he criticised the player whilst speaking on talkSPORT. You can watch the footage below.

Deeney told the Fozcast: “I was at Watford when his agent called me.

“I was speaking [on talkSport] about the leadership, about Harry Maguire, about David De Gea - about all the senior guys, why is it always Paul Pogba because it was always him getting battered early doors. That's all I said.

“I picked it up. It's Harry Maguire's agent, 'You can't do this, you can't do that. You wouldn't say it to Harry's face. And I was like 'hold on, one second, let's rewind. I have said this, I didn't say that. I would say it to Harry's face because I've got no problem’.”

Deeney then revealed he rang Maguire to get his side of the story but then found out the United captain knew nothing about what had happened.

The 34-year-old added: “I phoned the agent back saying, 'Listen mate, please don't phone me giving it the big'un because I'm not that guy and you're going to have a problem you don't want.

“It made me realise that my voice was powerful and penetrating. I just said 'what about the leadership' and it made this super agent come out of his little nest and say 'hold up Troy, we're taking a battering here'.

Alamy

“To be fair to Harry, he said to me 'I don't know what all that's about'. I said, 'It's not a problem, but the way he phoned and the aggression he was having. A younger me would have taken that much more personally. This is what I said - I'll tell you to your face, I've got no problem.”

So far in the 22/23 season, Maguire has seen his opportunities limited by Erik ten Hag, only making 15 appearances across all competitions.