England’s Harry Maguire and those loud stupid voices at Wembley

While The Fiver is happy to concede that it is invariably “a small minority” of England fans who tend to behave like strutting, entitled numbskulls, unfortunately it is they who tend to leave the most lasting impression. Just as the loudest, most stupid voices tend to get the most attention on social media disgraces, it is the loudest, most stupid Ingerland fans who tend to sing about German bombers, stick fireworks up their nether regions and “occupy” foreign city squares.

Last night, they were at it again. As the England team was read out over the Wembley Tannoy, a loud chorus of boos greeted the name of Harry Maguire, prompting no end of post-match handwringing from those who considered it despicable that a player who has done little or nothing wrong for his country should be booed by his own team’s fans, while wondering what possible good could come of jeering a player before a ball has been kicked.

“I thought the reception was a joke,” said England manager Gareth Southgate, sounding uncharacteristically spiky. “An absolute joke. I don’t get it. What he has done for us is phenomenal. We’re either all in this together or we’re not.” We have been here before. Maguire is simply the latest in a long line of completely inoffensive England players to have been inexplicably booed by their own in recent years.

Of course, the Manchester United defender is a big boy who is unlikely to let a minority of no-mark bullies get him down, but he will have felt mightily heartened – if slightly patronised – to see his manager and so many teammates rush to his defence. While the sight of fans criticising their own players is not uncommon we rarely see the shoe go on the other foot. However, Declan Rice, Jordan Henderson and Harry Kane