Manchester United captain Harry Maguire was convicted of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and attempts at bribery in a Greek court. He was handed a suspended sentence of 21 months and 10 days, but said he would appeal against the verdict.
Following the conviction, the defender was withdrawn from England’s squad for the National League matches next month.
Mr Maguire had pleaded not guilty to the charges, he is confident that he will be proved innocent after he makes his appeal.
Greek police allege that Mr Maguire tried to pay them off when they arrested him at an incident on the island of Mykonos, which also involved his brother Joe and a friend. Three judges found the men guilty of “physical harm, revilement against three or four police, resisting arrest and multiple attempted bribery”.
The police allege that during his arrest, Mr Maguire had said, “Do you know who I am? I am the captain of Manchester United, I am very rich, I can give you money, I can pay you, please let us go.”
READ MORE: Manchester United Captain Maguire arrested following late-night incident on Mykonos
In a statement released by the player, he said that his legal team is appealing the verdict.
“I remain strong and confident regarding our innocence in this matter – if anything myself, family and friends are the victims,” he said.
His team provided a statement supporting the captain. But although England manager Gareth Southgate had offered support, he released in a statement on Tuesday, following the verdict on the court at Syros: “In light of this evening’s developments, I can confirm I have withdrawn Harry Maguire from the England squad for the matches against Iceland and Denmark. As I said earlier today, I reserved the right to review the situation. Having spoken to Manchester United and the player, I have made this decision in the best interests of all parties and with consideration of the impact on our preparations for next week.”
