Harry Maguire heaped praise on Ben White following his England return on Friday night, backing the defender despite a mixed performance.

White marked his recall by opening the scoring, but later conceded a penalty that was converted by Federico Valverde for Uruguay.

Speaking after the match, Maguire highlighted White’s impact and overall display.

“It was a bit crazy, getting the first goal. I thought he was brilliant when he came on,” he said.

“I can’t criticise him for the penalty situation—if I were in that position, I’d be trying to block the shot as well. It was a very soft decision.

“He’s trained well all week, had a big smile on his face, and brought great energy to the camp. He deserved his goal tonight, and I thought he was excellent when he came on.”

He added that England were largely in control throughout the match and felt the opposition posed little threat.

“I thought we controlled the game for the most part, they didn’t really create any chances,” Harry Maguire said.

“We know we could have done better. When we made changes, we lost some rhythm in terms of our game plan, but that’s normal in these types of matches when substitutions come around the 60 to 70-minute mark.

“Overall, we were in control, they rarely got into our box, and then the penalty decision was just ridiculous.”