"Top as always, brother" - Manchester City star lauds Manchester United man Harry Maguire for performance on international duty

Manchester City dynamo Jack Grealish expressed praise for Manchester United's Harry Maguire following their latest exploits on international duty. Maguire has found playing time sporadic with the Red Devils lately and has made only 4 appearances this season across competitions. However, he proved to be a defensive rock as England sealed their qualification for the upcoming European Championship with a 3-1 victory over Italy.

A regular performer in Gareth Southgate's Three Lions squad, Maguire has consistently featured in England's qualification phase. He has started in all six group matches and anchored a defense that logged three clean sheets.

Although the Three Lions couldn't register another shutout against Italy, who scored first on the day, Maguire's defensive performance was brilliant. The stalwart defender provided a total 74 passes, with 93% accuracy. He also made important duels and clearances to keep the Italian advances at bay, while committing just one foul.

Celebrating the monumental win and acknowledging the journey ahead, Maguire took to social media with joy. The Manchester United player posted on Instagram:

"Special night at Wembley - qualification secured. We're on our way."

Grealish weighed in on the post, lauding his compatriot (via Manchester Evening News):

"Top [performance], as always, brother."

Although subjected to scrutiny for his fluctuating form at Manchester United, Maguire has been a linchpin for the Three Lions on the international stage. His contributions have been instrumental in England's notable runs in the last three major tournaments, including a World Cup quarter-final.

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Jadon Sancho has been omitted from Manchester United's squad photo

According to Manchester Evening News, United winger Jadon Sancho was absent from the club's squad photo for the current season. This will only add to speculations about the widening rift between him and the management.

This marks United's first in-person squad photo since the onset of the 2014-15 season, taken at their Carrington training complex, but Sancho was not involved. The 23-year-old has been walking a solitary path at the club's training grounds for the last five weeks. The root of the matter traces back to a Twitter spat between Sancho and Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag.

Following his exclusion from the matchday roster for the game against Arsenal on September 3, Sancho accused Ten Hag of falsehoods regarding his training performance. Since then, the frosty relations have only worsened, with Ten Hag relegating Sancho to train separately when the team reconvened in mid-September.

According to Manchester Evening News, Ten Hag has remained tight-lipped, refusing to utter Sancho's name during press conferences. Questions pertaining to the sidelined winger have also been met with terse responses, which don't help in dispelling rumors of an escalating internal strife.