Harry Maguire has been one of the most talked-about footballers on the planet over the last few years. The England international made his name at Sheffield United during their League One days before working his way up the football pyramid with Hull City.
After moving to Leicester City in 2017, Maguire established himself as a household name when he represented England at the 2018 World Cup. A year later, he suddenly became public enemy number one for many football fans when he joined Manchester United in an Ā£80 million deal.
So why exactly do some fans boo the central defender? And why does he not use his real first name?
Letās look at 10 facts about the man they call Slabhead.
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10. What is Harry Maguireās real name?
Itās a little-known fact that Harry is not the defenderās real first name.
His full name is Jacob Harry Maguire, but he prefers to be called Harry.
Joe Hart (Charles Joseph John Hart), Kevin Keegan (Joseph Kevin Keegan) and Mark Hughes (Leslie Mark Hughes) also prefer to be known by their middle names.
9. Why is Harry Maguire called Slabhead?
Maguire is nicknamed Slabhead simply because he has a massive head compared to the size of his body. Jamie Vardy gave his former Leicester teammate the nickname when they were on international duty with England at the 2018 World Cup.
In 2021, Maguire was asked a press conference to shed light on the Slabhead name after Italian media picked up on it.
āI think it actually does originate from Vardy and from Russia,ā Maguire said. āI think he said it in an interview once. Itās just caught on from there. I canāt say Iāve seen the Italian news reports! I donāt know what was said or whatās been said on that behalf.ā
8. What is the Harry Maguire song?
Following his 2018 World Cup exploits, England fans created a new song about Maguireās considerably sized cranium.
The lyrics also referenced the fact that he gets captured enjoying a few drinks every so often:
Harry Maguire!
Harry Maguire!
He drinks the vodka, he drinks the JƤger
His headās f***ing massive!
The chant, sung to the tune of the 1958 Mexican folk song La Bamba, is a big hit with England fans. There are several videos online showing supporters belting out the song in the street during major tournaments.
7. Where is Harry Maguire from?
Maguire was born in Sheffield. He grew up in the village of Mosborough and attended school in Spinkhill (Immaculate Conception Catholic Primary School) and Chesterfield (St Maryās Roman Catholic High School).
He played for Sheffield Unitedās academy from the age of 11 before making his first-team debut aged 18 in 2011.
6. Who does Harry Maguire support?
Based on the previous fact, it should come as no surprise that Maguire supports Sheffield United. He made 166 appearances for his boyhood team between the 2010-11 and 2013-14 seasons before joining Hull City.
Jamie Vardy regularly used to claim that Maguire supported Sheffield Unitedās arch rivals Sheffield Wednesday. However, the defender clarified in 2018 that Vardy was only joking.
āWhen I was a young boy, my dad supported Sheffield Wednesday and my mum supported Sheffield United,ā Maguire was quoted as saying by the Leicester Mercury. āWhen I was around 10 years old, my dad used to take me to a couple of [Sheffield Wednesday] games, but ever since I played for Sheffield United [Iāve supported them].ā
Maguire was named in the League One Team of the Year in 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 during his time with Sheffield United. He received the clubās Player of the Year award in all three of those seasons.
5. How tall is Harry Maguire?
While many point out the flaws in the defenderās game, he possesses good technical ability for someone of his size.
Fun fact: Maguire has become so well known that fans can buy a life-size cardboard cut-out of him online!
4. Why did Harry Maguire become Man Utd captain?
In January 2020, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer named Maguire as Manchester Unitedās new captain after Ashley Young joined Inter Milan.
Maguire had already led United 12 times in the first half of the 2019-20 season, so Solskjaer had no problem handing him the role on a permanent basis.
āHeās come in and been a leader in the group,ā Solskjaer said. āIāve been, not surprised, but Iāve been impressed by his leadership skills, so Harry will keep on wearing the armband. Heās come in and everything about him tells me he is a leader. Heās part of a group that weāve had, that have been leading this young group.ā
At the time, David de Gea and Marcus Rashford were the only other realistic candidates to take on the captaincy.
3. How much does Harry Maguire earn?
Mirror Football reported in September 2022 that Manchester Unitedās wage bill hit Ā£384.2 million ahead of the 2022-23 season. The staggering amount set a new annual salary record for a Premier League club.
According to Spotrac, Maguire earned roughly Ā£189,900 per week at the start of 2022-23. He was ninth on the clubās list of top earners.
Unsurprisingly, Cristiano Ronaldo led the way with a weekly wage of Ā£515,000.
2. What is Harry Maguireās net worth?
In May 2022, The Tab reported that Maguire is worth Ā£17 million.
That figure includes the Ā£80m manās endorsement contracts, which include a deal with sportswear company Puma.
1. Why did Harry Maguire get booed?
Maguire was considered to be one of the best defenders in the world when he joined Manchester United in 2019. After a decent start at Old Trafford, his form deteriorated to the point where he became a figure of fun for fans online.
The centre-backās poor performances at club level resulted in fans booing him when he played for England. The boos were particularly prominent before and during the Three Lionsā 3-0 win over Ivory Coast at Wembley in March 2022.
After the game, England manager Gareth Southgate described the fansā reaction as an āabsolute jokeā. He said supporters should get behind players at international level regardless of how they perform for their clubs.