Manchester United’s manager has said Harry Maguire is an “absolute top human being” and will remain the club’s captain despite being convicted of assaulting a police officer.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has backed the defender – a week before his side are due to play Crystal Palace in their first game of the season.

Maguire was handed a 21-month sentence for assaulting a police officer, swearing, resisting arrest and attempted bribery on the Greek island of Mykonos last month.

The 27-year-old has since filed an appeal against his conviction and will get a retrial in a more senior court on a date yet to be announced.

His appeal nullifies the verdict and means Maguire has no criminal record ahead of a full retrial.

Solskjaer told Manchester United’s official website: “He’s handled it really well and, of course, I’ll be here to support him.

“He is going to be our captain.

“We’ll just leave Harry and his people and the process to run.”

Maguire was withdrawn from the England squad for last week’s Nations League double-header against Iceland and Denmark.

Solskjaer said: “Of course, Harry, as you said, had a difficult summer. He didn’t have a long break.

“His break was different to others as we gave him a few more days and, after, he’s come back and looked fine.

“For me, he is a top, an absolute top human being and has always been a positive guy with the right values. So I really hope we can see Harry performing at his best.”

England manager Gareth Southgate plans to bring Maguire back into the England setup next month for the friendly with Wales and the Nations League double-header with Belgium and Denmark.

Maguire became the world’s most expensive defender when joining United from Leicester for £80m in August 2019.

He was named as Manchester United’s club captain in January following Ashley Young’s departure to Inter Milan.

Maguire played in every minute of United’s 38-game Premier League campaign, becoming the first outfield player to do so for the club since 1995.

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