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Harry Maguire’s mother has criticised the “disgraceful” abuse her son has been subjected to which she claims goes far beyond football. The under-fire Manchester United defender dismissed the reception he received at Hampden Park during England’s 3-1 friendly win over Scotland but manager Gareth Southgate said it was “ridiculous” and “a joke”. Now Maguire’s mum Zoe Maguire-Wilkinson has waded in. “As a mum seeing the level of negative and abusive comments in which my son is receiving from some fans, pundits and the media is disgraceful and totally unacceptable to any walk of life never mind someone who works his socks off for club and country,” she wrote on Instagram. “I was there in the stand as usual, it’s not acceptable what’s been created, over nothing. I understand that in the football world there are ups and downs, positives and negatives but what Harry receives has gone far beyond ‘football’. “For me seeing him go through what he’s going through is not OK. I would hate to have to see any other parents or players go through this in the future, especially the young boys and girls breaking through the ranks today. “Harry has a massive heart and it’s a good job he’s mentally strong and can handle it as others may not be able too. I wish this sort of abuse on nobody!” As a mum seeing the level of negative and abusive comments in which my son is receiving... is disgraceful and totally unacceptable Maguire's mum Zoe Maguire-Wilkinson Little more than two years ago, the centre-back was an ever-present for United and earned a place in the Euros team of the tournament after helping Southgate’s side reach the final. But a drop in form and club game time, including being replaced as captain at Old Trafford, has led pressure and criticism to ratchet up on Maguire, which culminated in every pass Maguire made on Tuesday being met by an ironic cheer after he was brought on as a half-time substitute – where he scored an unfortunate own goal. “It pretty much takes the pressure away from my team-mates and puts it all on myself. It makes them play better, for sure,” said Maguire after the game. “It is a little bit of banter and it is a hostile environment, coming away to Scotland. “I would not say I am a person who struggles with pressure mentally. I have been through a lot in the last couple of years and I have been Manchester United captain for nearly four years. “You take a huge lot of responsibility and everything that comes with it and that is a lot of bad as well as good.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Leon Smith warns Switzerland will have ‘high motivation’ for Davis Cup clash Harry Kane signs memorabilia deal with American company Fanatics Former Sri Lanka international Jehan Mubarak prepares kids for special World Cup

Rugby fans and players will pay tribute to the victims of the natural disasters that have hit Libya and Morocco ahead of a World Cup match between France and Uruguay on Thursday

The Milan derby has the air of a title match even at this early stage of the season

England striker Chloe Kelly expects the women’s game to continue growing in the country despite the Lionesses’ World Cup final heartbreak. The Manchester City forward, match-winner in the Euro 2022 final, this time experienced the heartbreak of defeat as England were beaten by Spain in Sydney last month. But the 25-year-old looks on the tournament as a whole as a positive experience that is only likely to generate further interest in the sport. She feels proof of that came on Thursday as City announced a new agreement with baby gear brand Joie to become the new naming rights partner of their Academy Stadium. “It was a great summer, and a great summer for women’s football and England,” said Kelly, “It’s great to be winning the Euros and then going on to a World Cup final. It’s great for the country and great for the women’s game. “That success obviously brings deals like this to the women’s game, which is really important for the growth of the game. It is exciting and there is a lot to come still.” Kelly has already put the disappointment of the World Cup final loss behind her as she focuses on pre-season training with City. She said: “It’s good to get back in with the team, get back on the pitch, keep learning, find those relationships again and keep building on last season. “Of course I’m not on top of my game as it’s still pre-season - I don’t want to peak too early - and it is really important we build as we go. “Starting the season well is really important but I think as we go we need to get better. It’s important not starting where we need to be at the end of the season. We need to be consistent throughout.” After missing out on honours last term, and narrowly falling short of a Champions League spot, Kelly is determined for the team to make its mark. She added: “We want to be winning trophies. It is really important for us to be doing that, and Champions League football - we need to be in it and we need to be pushing for that.” Manchester City begin their Women’s Super League campaign with a trip to West Ham on October 1 but prior to the start of the WSL, Kelly will return to the international fold for Nations League games against Scotland and the Netherlands on September 22 and 26 respectively. England manager Sarina Wiegman has expressed concern at the scheduling of the matches so soon after the end of the World Cup in Australia. “It is important we recover well,” Kelly said. “We need to look after our bodies in these moments.” Read More Sarina Wiegman ‘worried’ about schedule as England prepare for Nations League Gary Neville received abuse ‘like nothing before’ in social media swap with Jill Scott ‘Get back in the kitchen’: Lioness Fara Williams on the aggressive sexist and homophobic abuse she gets online How Fifa is leading the push for football transfers’ biggest change since Bosman Maguire’s mother hits out at criticism of England and Man United defender Harry Kane signs memorabilia deal with American company Fanatics

Chelsea Gray had 20 points and seven assists, Jackie Young added 18 points and the top-seeded Las Vegas Aces beat the Chicago Sky 87-59 to begin a WNBA playoff series

No. 8 Washington visits Michigan State on Saturday

New Zealand should rack up a pile of points against Namibia on Friday in Toulouse the Rugby World Cup

Referee Yoshimi Yamashita will return to Qatar to make more soccer history at the men’s Asian Cup in January after she worked in the country last year at the men’s World Cup

Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen will return from the international break with a big game on the line

England defender Harry Maguire has got the unlikely backing of Hollywood actor Tom Holland after his horror own goal. On 12 September, Maguire scored an unfortunate own goal in the international team’s friendly against neighbours Scotland, which finished 3-1 to England. Ahead of the international break, many questioned manager Gareth Southgate’s decision to include 30-year-old Maguire in the line-up, given his lack of minutes played for club side Manchester United. The defender was jeered after he was substituted on at half-time and matters only became worse when his deflected own goal in the 67th minute blemished England’s 2-0 scoreline at the time. Amidst the abuse Maguire is facing, an unlikely celebrity has come to his defence as actor Holland called him an “asset” to England. In an interview with Sky Sports, Holland said: “Look, I think being a professional athlete is incredibly tough, you’re under pressure every time you step onto the field. I admire the fact that he steps on there no matter what people are saying. He tries his best, he plays his best game. “I think he’s a great player, he’s been a huge asset to England over the years,” the actor continued. “Yes, he made a mistake last night but he had to put his foot out, he can’t let a ball like that come through the box. Those things happen in football. I really admire Harry, he seems like a really nice guy.” His mother, Zoe Maguire, has also condemned the abuse being aimed at her son in a lengthy statement, suggesting that “others may not be able” to handle what he is currently facing. In an Instagram story, she wrote: “As a mum, seeing the level of negative and abusive comments in which my son is receiving from some fans, pundits and the media is disgraceful and totally unacceptable to any walk of life never mind someone who works his socks off for club and country.” She continued: “I was there in the stands as usual, it’s not acceptable what’s been created over nothing. I understand that in the football world there are ups and downs, positive and negatives but what Harry receives has gone far beyond ‘football’. “For me seeing him go through what he’s going through is not ok. I would hate to have to see other parents or players go through this in future, especially young boys and girls breaking through the ranks today. “Harry has a massive heart and it’s a good job he’s mentally strong and can handle it as others may not be able too [sic]. I wish this sort of abuse on nobody!” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

A freak incident in the team hotel has ruled out Scotland hooker Dave Cherry from his first Rugby World Cup

Peter Crouch has opened up about the weird habits of one of his former Tottenham Hotspur teammates who had passion for crisps, croissants and cars – but didn’t even like football. Benoît Assou-Ekotto played 202 games for Spurs between 2006 and 2015, and became something of a cult hero at the club. But on many of those occasions the stylish left back didn’t even know which team he was playing until minutes before the match because of his total disinterest for the sport. Crouch said: “He would tell us straight out that he had no interest in football whatsoever. He genuinely didn’t like it. At 1.30pm on a Saturday he’d have no idea which team you were playing.” But perhaps the French-Cameroonian player’s strangest habit, Crouch said, was his pre-match meal – usually something professional sportspeople take extremely seriously. “Benoît would turn up with a Tesco’s bag containing the same four items every time: a croissant, a hot chocolate, a full-fat Coke and a packet of crisps. “The croissant I understood. He is French-Cameroonian. The hot chocolate: same cultural backstory. He used to dip the first into the second. “But the crisps, and the Coke — it was like two discrete lunches, one belonging to a middle-aged Parisian and the other a 12-year-old on the Seven Sisters Road. “And it worked. He was always in great shape and rarely injured.” Crouch, 42, was speaking in an interview with the Mail, ahead of the release of a documentary about his career. Both players were fan favourites at the club, Crouch for his towering height and Assou-Ekotto for his flair-filled runs down the wing. Assou-Ekotto made 22 appearances for Cameroon during his 14-year career, which also saw him play for Queen’s Park Rangers, Lens and Saint Étienne. Crouch added: “We accepted it, along with all the other weirdness: the random cars he would turn up to training in, sometimes a Smart car, then a Lamborghini; the way he would refuse to take ice baths for recovery, on the rather basic premise that they were 'too cold'. “Benoît was a really weird guy but we loved him a lot.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.