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Harry Maguire’s assault conviction nullified as Manchester United confirm official appeal accepted for full retrial

The England international was omitted from Gareth Southgate’s squad after initially being included before Tuesday’s verdict

Jack Rathborn
Wednesday 26 August 2020 17:21 BST
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Harry Maguire pleads not guilty in Greek court after Mykonos arrest
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Harry Maguire’s conviction for charges of assault and attempted bribery following a brawl in Mykonos has been nullified with an appeal accepted for a full retrial.

The prosecution alleged on Tuesday in a Greek court that Maguire pushed a police officer at the scene of the incident and attempted to resist arrest before arriving at the police department where the Manchester United captain attempted to bribe officials.

But Manchester United have now confirmed the player’s appeal has been successfully lodged, with Greek law “extinguishing the initial court verdict”.

A Manchester United statement read: “An appeal against yesterday’s verdict was lodged this morning by Harry’s legal team. In accordance with the Greek judicial process, the filing of an appeal extinguishes the initial court verdict and nullifies the conviction.

“The appeal has been accepted and will lead to a full retrial in a more senior court. This means that Harry has no criminal record and is once again presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Harry Maguire was found guilty of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and repeated attempts of bribery
Harry Maguire was found guilty of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and repeated attempts of bribery (AP)

“Accordingly, he is not subject to any international travel restrictions.”

Maguire himself insists he will “remain strong and confident” despite the setback on Tuesday.

In a statement released following the verdict, Maguire said: “Following the hearing today, I have instructed my legal team with immediate effect to inform the courts we will be appealing.

“I remain strong and confident regarding our innocence in this matter – if anything myself, family and friends are the victims.”

United begin their Premier League season on 19 September against Crystal Palace.

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