Luke Shaw urges Manchester United fans to accept Harry Maguire role

Luke Shaw has praised the character of Harry Maguire and urged Manchester United fans to accept his status as a key player for the England national side.

Maguire, 29, has lost his place in the starting line-up at club level this season but has retained the backing of national team boss Gareth Southgate throughout his recent struggles. The United captain was backed to start for England in their 3-3 draw with Germany on Monday night but failed to repay Southgate's faith with a poor performance that saw him concede a penalty and lose possession for the visitors' second goal.

Maguire's display once again raised questions about his credentials as a United player, but defensive teammate Shaw believes he still has a lot to offer and deserves to be backed.

“I will be honest, it is a tough period at the moment,” Shaw told the BBC.

“Of course Harry is an amazing player, an amazing character. He has taken a lot of stick, probably more than I have ever seen before in football but he never hides away, he is always there.

“You can have people that can hide away and not want to be in the spotlight but he keeps putting himself in the spotlight and it shows the strength and character he has got because, come on, everyone knows that he is an unbelievable player.

“At the moment the confidence might not be there because it might feel like the whole world is against him, it is tough for him but us as players, staff we are all behind him because he is a very important player and it shows Gareth’s trust that he has played in both games.

“Look at the Euros and what he has done, people need to understand he is a big part of the England team and they have to accept it.”