Harry Maguire’s move to West Ham collapses with Man Utd future unclear

The England centre back was stripped of the captaincy at Old Trafford this summer, but he looks set to remain at the club

Harry Maguire’s £30 million move to West Ham is off, with the England defender now likely to stay at Manchester United.

The two clubs had agreed a fee for the centre back, who had been stripped of the Man United captaincy this summer.

But Maguire would have had to take a substantial cut in his wages to leave Old Trafford, with his Man United salary going up this summer after Erik ten Hag’s team qualified for the Champions League, and no pay-off was agreed.

Ten Hag has always said that he regards Maguire as a valuable member of his squad and wanted the former Leicester, Hull and Sheffield United player to stay and fight for his place. He was on the bench for Monday’s 1-0 win over Wolves, though Ten Hag brought on Victor Lindelof ahead of him.

Man United were also concerned that Maguire’s departure this late in the window would not have given them much time to find a replacement, though Bayern Munich’s Benjamin Pavard would have been one contender.

West Ham, who have signed midfielders Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse with the proceeds of Declan Rice’s £105million sale to Arsenal, are now expected to switch their attention to other defensive targets.

The former Man United midfielder Jesse Lingard, who had a successful loan spell under David Moyes in 2021/22, is also training with West Ham and available on a free transfer after leaving Nottingham Forest.