Harry Maguire: Brendan Rodgers insists Leicester do not need to sell defender
"There's nothing there that is going to tempt the club at all. The club don't need to sell, the club don't want to sell."
Wednesday 24 July 2019 10:35, UK
Brendan Rodgers says "nothing has changed" with regards to the future of Harry Maguire, and insists the club do not need to sell him.
It is understood the England defender is becoming increasingly frustrated with Leicester's stance towards selling him this summer after the Foxes rejected two bids from Manchester United, who have the 26-year-old on a shortlist of centre-back targets.
Leicester have made it clear they are not interested in selling at that price - around £70m - and are demanding a world-record fee for a defender if he is to leave the King Power Stadium, currently the £75m Liverpool paid for Virgil van Dijk.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the friendly win, Rodgers says he is relaxed about the talk, insists the club neither want nor need to sell Maguire, and says his professionalism is making the situation easier.
"We're very relaxed," Rodgers said. "The clubs that have spoken to Leicester have not met any valuation that the club has put on him, so at this moment in time he's very much a Leicester player, and you can see where his concentration is, and it's very much here.
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Asked if Maguire wants to stay at the club, Rodgers said: "That's not really for me to say."
He added: "I'm quite relaxed. It's all 'what if?' At this moment in time there's nothing there that is going to tempt the club at all. The club don't need to sell, the club don't want to sell.
"Harry is working with a group of fantastic players and is at a great club, and like I say times have changed in football, where at times with other clubs you would have had to sell a player, but it's not the case.
"He's a player that is training, working. What I would say is he's been the ultimate professional. It's actually been a joy to work with him, because I've been in this situation with a number of players, but his concentration is fully on Leicester. You see by his performance, and in training every day he's been absolutely first class."
Asked if there have been any increased bids, Rodgers said: "Not that I'm aware of", and asked if he could reveal the valuation the club have put on Maguire, he replied: "Not really, no. There's no more discussion on it."
Maguire captained Leicester in the win over Cambridge, scoring a towering header to open the scoring, tweeting after the game: "More minutes in the tank."
Rodgers was full of praise for Maguire's professionalism, not only in the pre-season games but behind the scenes and in training.
"He's been absolutely great," Rodgers added. "There's obviously been a lot of speculation, if you pick up the media there's a different story about Harry every day, but thankfully he's very focused on his work.
"You can see he is working on his fitness as well as his game. It was a great header from Harry, a good 60 minutes from him, so he's working very well.
"He's working very hard, I don't get too involved in it, I just make sure he's focused on his football, and for that he's been absolutely amazing, so we just continue working."
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Fantasy Football: Maguire the man?
Whether Harry Maguire stays with Brendan Rodgers at Leicester or makes the move to Old Trafford is yet to be seen, but you can add him to your Sky Sports Fantasy Football team for just £8.9m. The centre-half has already been selected by 18 per cent of Fantasy Football bosses.
