Harry Maguire criticises referee over Ronald Araujo tackle on Phil Foden

Harry Maguire has strongly criticised the officiating during England’s draw with Uruguay at Wembley after Ronald Araujo avoided a red card for a heavy challenge on Phil Foden.

The Manchester City playmaker was forced off the pitch following an aggressive follow-through from the Barcelona defender.

Foden immediately went down in pain and had to be replaced by Cole Palmer just minutes later.

England manager Thomas Tuchel expressed his clear frustration to the fourth official on the touchline.

Maguire questions standard of officiating

Maguire admitted the failure to dismiss Araujo was incredibly difficult for the home side to accept.

He told ITV: “You don’t see tackles like that and not get red cards.”

“A couple of months from the World Cup and we’ve got referees allowing tackles like that… It’s disappointing,” the Manchester United centre-back added.

“We have to move on and manage the game better and come away with the victory.”

VAR denies returning White a winning goal

The controversial tackle was not the only flashpoint on a frustrating Friday night for the Three Lions.

Ben White had initially marked his return to the international setup with the opening goal of the game.

The Arsenal defender recently returned to the squad under Tuchel following a prolonged absence during the previous managerial regime.

However, his successful comeback was marred in stoppage time when a VAR review penalised him for a challenge on Federico Vinas.

Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde stepped up to convert the resulting spot-kick and rescue a late draw for the South American side.

‘A real soft penalty’

Maguire was quick to defend his international team-mate over the decisive late incident.

“A bit crazy, scoring the first goal, I thought he was brilliant when he came on,” Maguire stated.

“I can’t say anything about the defending for that one – if that was me in that position I’d be attempting to block the shot as well.”

“That’s what we’ve got to do. That’s a real soft penalty.”