HARRY'S HOLS Harry Maguire granted special Portugal holiday as Ten Hag exempts Man Utd star from strict injury code to ‘clear head’

Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag was happy for his injured defender to jet off to the golf resort of Quinta do Lagofor while his team-mates struggled in the Europa League.

Harry Maguire has been granted an extra holiday by Erik ten Hag Credit: PA

Maguire, 29, on holiday with wife Fern Hawkins earlier this year Credit: https://www.instagram.com/harrymaguire93/?hl=en

Maguire’s sunshine break with family members was sanctioned to help him “clear his head” whilst recovering from injury picked up on England duty.

Ten Hag is desperate for the under-fire centre-back to rediscover his long-lost form after a series of poor displays for club and country.

The ruthless Dutchman has previously insisted on all injured players remaining within the squad at the club’s Carrington training ground as they fight back to fitness.

A source said: “Erik has high standards for everyone to abide by. He expects all injured players to remain with the group.

"He believes they should function as one unit - injured or not.

"But in Harry’s case he felt there were exceptional circumstances. He wanted him to have a mental break from the pressure he’s under.

"He went away with his family and Erik hopes that will put him in a better place to recover from injury and rediscover his form."

Maguire is set to miss Sunday's match against Everton at Goodison Park as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury.

Ten Hag has backed the skipper repeatedly after a series of flops.

And after Maguire’s abysmal England display in a 3-3 draw with Germany, Ten Hag insisted: “I have to back him but I back him because I believe in him.

"I can see the qualities and even after he wasn’t in the team he trained really well and, more importantly, the quality was really there.

"You see his career, almost 50 caps for England, for Leicester and Man United - he’s performing really well, what you see is high potential.

"And then it’s about him. The players in the dressing room, the coaches, the manager believe in him.

"That’s what I told him, I’m sure he can do it and he will turn it around, I’m convinced of that.”

But his absence in Cyprus has caused further splits within the dressing room.

It comes after United’s devastating 6-3 derby thrashing to Manchester City last weekend laid bare the ongoing problems at Old Trafford.

Ten Hag called players in on Monday for an analysis of their performance but passions ‘boiled over’ during the ‘frank and heated’ heart-to-heart.

New boy Lisandro Martinez, 24, and midfielder Scott McTominay, 25, were said to be among the more vocal United players.

One source said: “Ten Hag asked each player one-by-one to explain their mistakes to one another.

Lisandro Martinez was a vocal part of a dressing-room inquest Credit: Reuters

Scott McTominay made his feelings known to his team-mates Credit: AP

"Some players were blaming others for not covering, which led to full blown arguments.

"One player told another to ‘concentrate on your own f***ing game’.

"It all got smoothed over but tensions are high. Ten Hag actively encouraged it.

"He’s told them he wants to see that level of passion on the field, not after the game has been put to bed.”

A United source said: “Erik wants them to get angry. It was frank and heated and that’s what he wants to see.

"You’d be surprised if he didn’t encourage it. He wants them to have that fighting spirit.”

A United spokesman said: “Harry was given permission to travel to Portugal to continue his rehabilitation while the rest of the squad was in Cyprus, allowing him to benefit from the same warm weather conditions.

"Harry was accompanied by a MU physio and has been working hard on his recovery.

"He is due back at Carrington on Sunday.”

Erik ten Hag called for an inquest after the Manchester derby Credit: Reuters