I feared for my life and thought I was being kidnapped in Greece: Manchester United skipper Harry Maguire

Manchester United captain Harry Maguire who was involved in a fight along with his brother and a friend, while holidaying in Greece has said that he feared for his life and thought that he was being kidnapped.

“My initial thought, I thought we were getting kidnapped. We got down on our knees, we put our hands in the air, they just started hitting us,” he told BBC Sport.

“They were hitting my leg saying my career’s over, ‘No more football. You won’t play again’.

“And at this point I thought there is no chance these are police or I don’t know who they are so I tried to run away, I was in that much of a panic, fear, scared for my life. All the way through it,” he was quoted as saying.

On Tuesday, the 27-year-old was handed a suspended prison sentence of 21 months and 10 days by the Greek court.

He was later also withdrawn from England’s Nations League squad after being convicted.

Maguire had claimed that the incident took place outside a police station after he attempted to take his younger sister Daisy to a hospital because she appeared to be losing consciousness having been approached by two men.

Maguire has asked for a re-trial

According to Sky Sports, his club said on Wednesday that Maguire no longer had a criminal record and was free to travel internationally, while he awaits a full re-trial in a more senior court – which is unlikely to happen until the New Year at the earliest.

The club said the legal appeal now “extinguishes” the verdict of the Syros court, and “nullifies” his conviction.

The Manchester United defender also denied attempting to bribe the police.

When asked about that, he replied: “No, for sure. As soon as I saw that statement, it’s just ridiculous.”

He insists he has no reason to apologise for the incident but expressed regret at causing potential embarrassment to his club.

“It was horrible. It’s not something I ever want to do again. I don’t wish it on anybody. It’s the first time I’ve ever been inside a prison,” he said.

“I don’t feel like I owe an apology to anybody. An apology is something when you’ve done something wrong or regret. I regret being in the situation. I play for one of the biggest clubs in the world, I regret putting the fans and the club through this.”