Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag left fuming over Harry Maguire u-turn – which will seriously alter transfer plans: report

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag looks dejected with Harry Maguire and Christian Eriksen during the Emirates FA Cup Final match between Manchester City and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on June 3, 2023 in London, England.
(Image credit: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is fuming over a Harry Maguire u-turn, which looks set to affect the rest of the transfer window for the Red Devils.

The club have brought in new players across the team, with a new goalkeeper in Andre Onana, a new midfielder in Mason Mount and a new striker in Rasmus Hojlund. Ten Hag would like to have a completely new spine to his side by adding one more defender, however, with Maguire set to leave.

The former Manchester United captain looked all set to depart the club with a fee agreed with West Ham United only for the deal to fall through – with The Guardian reporting that Maguire's exit from Old Trafford is yet to be agreed between player and club.

Manchester United captain Harry Maguire reacts during the UEFA Europa League Quarterfinal Second Leg match between Sevilla FC and Manchester United at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on April 20, 2023 in Seville, Spain.

Manchester United defender Harry Maguire is digging his heels, according to reports (Image credit: Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Maguire is believed to be demanding a payout from his employers to leave, with West Ham turning attention to former Arsenal star Dino Mavropanos, according to ExWHUEmployee on Twitter – later confirmed by Fabrizio Romano.

Now, The Mirror have confirmed that Maguire's u-turn is having a knock on the rest of United's transfer business, with the 20-time English champions needing to sell the 30-year-old in order to bring in someone to replace him.

VIDEO: Why Southgate picks Maguire

The Mail have confirmed that United's top target to replace Maguire in the backline, Benjamin Pavard, is the subject of a bid from Inter Milan, with the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City all interested in the World Cup winner this summer.

While United would love to bring in Pavard as a direct replacement for Maguire, though, they are powerless to until Maguire leaves the club, giving their rivals a march on the target. 

Benjamin Pavard of Bayern Muenchen controls the Ball during the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern München and RB Leipzig at Allianz Arena on May 20, 2023 in Munich, Germany.

Benjamin Pavard is wanted by Manchester United (Image credit: Harry Langer/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

Should Maguire fail to agree his exit before the end of the transfer window, Ten Hag could be lumbered with a player that he clearly doesn't trust for another year – as demonstrated by Victor Lindelof coming on as a substitute on Monday night against Wolverhampton Wanderers ahead of Maguire and left-back Luke Shaw featuring at centre-back ahead of his international colleague in the centre of defence last season on numerous occasions.

Transfermarkt values Pavard at €40 million.

More Manchester United stories

Manchester United transfer news is coming thick and fast as we enter the final few weeks of the summer window.

Harry Maguire could be one of seven players on their way out of Old Trafford between now and deadline day. Meanwhile, a World Cup-winning star could be about to join United from another European heavyweight.

The Manchester United season preview looks at why the Red Devils can start to dream of winning the Premier League title again, while all other 91 clubs in the top four tiers of English football are looked at, too.  

Mark White
Content Editor

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.