'Destroyed mentally' Harry Maguire told he should join Chelsea this summer

Harry Maguire has been told to swap Manchester United for Chelsea this summer after a tough year at Old Trafford.

The United captain was dropped from the starting XI for Monday's 2-1 win over Liverpool and faces a fight to win his place back.

Chelsea raised the possibility of signing Maguire as United explored the signing of Christian Pulisic last week.

Emmanuel Petit believes the defender should take the opportunity and get his head in the right place ahead of this winter's World Cup.

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He told Fair Betting Sites: "If I am Maguire, I would feel insecure and in a very difficult position.

"I lost the armband, I’m not the captain anymore, I lost my place in the team. And now I am on the bench.

"When I look at him, my first feeling is ‘this guy is destroyed mentally’. He’s not there anymore. He needs to rebuild mentally.

"He has to do this every single game, by playing well. Trying to get back the confidence from the fans, from his team-mates, from the press, from himself. To try to feel more secure on the pitch.

"At the moment, this is not the case. I think mentally, he’s very low, he’s down. He needs to work mentally."

Maguire joined United from Leicester City in an £80 million move three years ago, which made him the most expensive defender in world football.

He was named captain in January 2020 following the departure of Ashley Young, but is yet to convince fans he deserves the armband.

Last season saw United come sixth with their lowest-ever Premier League points tally and Maguire was heavily criticised.

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Petit continued: "He needs to take a big decision. If he wants to play for Chelsea, that could be good for him. I think he would probably play, because Thiago Silva is aged, and they need a central defender.

"I think it’s a win-win position for Chelsea and Maguire. If I am Maguire, I would leave Manchester United."

It's unlikely Chelsea return for Maguire, as they're close to signing Wesley Fofana from Leicester City for £70 million.

The 21-year-old has been keen to move to Stamford Bridge all summer and Leicester have accepted a fourth bid from the Blues.

Fofana was left out of the Foxes' squad for last weekend's 2-1 defeat to Southampton and he was filmed in the stands looking glum after James Maddison opened the scoring.

Topics: Manchester United, Harry Maguire, Premier League, Chelsea

Daniel Marland

Daniel is a social editor for SPORTbible after moving from the writing team. Nearly scored past Stormzy at Old Trafford once.

@DanMarland_