Harry Maguire: Sheffield-born Manchester United star receives bomb threat

Maguire, who lives with his fiance and two young children, is understood to have taken the threat seriously, calling in Cheshire Police to investigate.

A spokesman for Maguire said: "In the last 24 hours, Harry has received a serious threat to his family home.

"The safety of his family and those around him is obviously Harry's number one priority."

The spokesman added: "He will continue to prepare for this weekend's fixture as normal and we will not be commenting in any further detail at this time."

The 29-year-old's spokesman said police were "looking into the matter".

It is not known who made the threat and sources are not willing to say how it was made.

The police said: "On Wednesday, 20 April Cheshire Police were called to reports of a bomb threat at an address in the Wilmslow area.

"No evacuations took place, but as a precautionary measure a police explosives dog has attended the address this afternoon, Thursday, 21 April, to conduct a search of the gardens and surrounding area."

The threat comes after intense criticism Maguire has received for his performances at United in recent months, including Tuesday night's 4-0 defeat by Liverpool.

The £80m defender has been blasted by fans over his lack of form, although he defended himself in a TV interview this week by pointing out both Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick have continued to pick him.

Born in Sheffield in 1993, Maguire came through the youth system at Sheffield United before graduating to the first team in 2011. He totalled 166 professional games for the club and was their Player of the Year three consecutive times before moving to Hull City in 2014.

A move to Leicester City followed in 2017 before moving to Manchester United in 2019 for a fee believed to be £80 million, a world-record amount for a defender, and within six months was appointed the club captain.

He was picked for England's squads at both the 2018 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2020, earning a place in the Team of the Tournament in the latter.