Tag: Football

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The cost of broadband, Amazon Prime, and both Sky and TNT Sports subscriptions is between £80 to £90 a month.

Therefore, one would have to pay over £1000 per year to watch all televised football in the United Kingdom.

380 Premier League games are played in total every season, while only 200 are televised – just over 50%.

Britons are paying a similar amount to what they would spend on car insurance just to watch football that used to be accessible under a single £20 Sky Sports subscription in the mid 2000s.

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In retaliation against this exploitation, many have turned to illegal streaming services.

Despite the potential legal issues of doing so, one in 10 Britons admitted last year that they use such services to watch sports events, according to a poll conducted by YouGov.

With the surge in television subscription prices, accessing illegal streams through jailbroken Amazon Fire Sticks has become increasing popular.

Watching TV or streaming services without paying the required fee to do so is illegal under copyright laws.

One could be sent to prison for between 12 months to five years, depending on the severity of the crime.

In some cases, offenders may be required to pay a fine for these copyright breaches, according to intellectual property lawyer Samuel O’Toole.

“The copyright holder could take a home streamer to the Intellectual Property and Enterprise Court.”

“There you could pay £60,000 in costs and if you lose you will pay the other side’s costs and compensation as well,” he told the MailOnline.

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Before the 2024/25 Premier League season, a spokesperson from the Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) explained that they plan to clamp down on the rise in this type of crime.

“FACT constantly monitors the digital landscape to combat illegal streaming activities in the UK and Ireland.”

“We utilise a range of methods to identify individuals engaged in unauthorised businesses that offer access to illegal streams”, they said.

“One of these methods is through our partnership with Crimestoppers to make it as easy as possible to report illegal streaming, and over the past we have seen a significant increase in the number of reports directly linked to Fire Sticks and illegal streaming.”

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Manchester United are winless in four games under Erik ten Hag and sit 13th in the Premier League table.

With a historically poor 2023/24 campaign and an even worse start to this season, Ten Hag’s reign at United may be at the boiling point.

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Speaking yesterday, Sir Jim Ratcliffe commented on whether he still has faith in the Dutchman.

“I don’t want to answer that question…I like Erik”, he responded.

“I think he’s a very good coach but at the end of the day it’s not my call, it’s the management team that’s running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.”

So, if it is not Ratcliffe making the decision on the manager’s future, who is?

An insider has revealed to CentreDevils that Dan Ashworth will make the final call on Ten Hag’s sacking.

Ashworth will have power to veto suggestions made by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Omar Berrada, and other INEOS executives; whatever he says, goes.

Working closely with Ashworth on this case is technical director Jason Wilcox; he will report his thoughts and play a role in the decision-making process.

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On Tuesday, the club’s hierarchy is due to gather in London for a committee meeting.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Sir Dave Brailsford, Omar Berrada, Dan Ashworth, Jason Wilcox and Joel Glazer will be all be present, among other executives.

The main focus of this meeting will be regarding Ten Hag’s future and whether he is the man to get the most out of United’s strong squad.

The ownership have already selected Ruud van Nistelrooy as United’s interim manager, should Erik ten Hag be sacked.

It seems that the club have almost made their mind up on his future and that judgement day will soon come for Ten Hag.

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After a dramatic 3-3 draw with Porto in the Europa League, Manchester United are now set to take on Aston Villa this weekend.

Already the pressure around manager Erik ten Hag is mounting, with the United bosses meeting next week to discuss the operational aspects of the club. After a run of poor performances by ten Hag’s men dating back to last season, time could be up for the Dutchman at Old Trafford.

It was previously reported that ten Hag had the Porto and Villa fixtures to get better results to save his job. However, with United throwing a 2-0 lead to then draw with Porto, even more pressure sits on the match-up with The Villains.

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As if this wasn’t pressure enough, ten Hag could also go into the game, missing as many as five of his key players.

Manchester United’s missing men for Aston Villa fixture

United are still suffering from three long-term injuries in the form of Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia and Leny Yoro.

The trio of defenders have been out for some time now, leaving United without a natural left-back. Ten Hag has been relying on right-back Diogo Dalot to cover the left-back position since last season. With the lack of a natural left-back available in the squad, it came as a surprise that one wasn’t recruited over the summer.

Meanwhile, Yoro joined The Red Devils in the summer and unfortunately suffered a broken metatarsal in his first pre-season tour game against Arsenal ruling him out of the start of the season.

However, United also has two midfielders with concerns about whether they’ll be ready for the Aston Villa game.

Mason Mount came on for an injured Kobbie Mainoo in their match-up with Tottenham Hotspur, before coming off himself with a head injury.

Speaking after the Porto game, ten Hag said: ” We had three players with issues going into this (Porto) game. Harry Maguire, Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo.”

He continued: “Harry Maguire and Alejandro made the squad and they were capable of playing some minutes. Kobbie Mainoo didn’t make it. It was too big a risk. We have to wait and see if he can play on Sunday if he’s fit enough to start or be on the bench.”

Whilst the situation with Mount has been confirmed as not being concussion, it’s unsure whether he’ll be available for this weekend.

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Manchester United and Erik ten Hag could not agree over a new contract last summer.

Instead, the board decided to trigger an extension in his current contract which keeps him at the club until 2026.

At this moment, it will cost United around £17.5m to sack Ten Hag and pay him his salary compensation.

However, if results continue to disappoint, it may be financially sound to bite the bullet and get rid of the Dutchman.

According to UEFA, each of the 36 clubs that qualify for the Champions League receive around £15.6m in prize money.

If United were to let go of Ten Hag now, their losses in compensation payments could be made back within a year.

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However, United’s owners are aware that signing a top manager in the middle of the season is unrealistic.

That is why they are currently eyeing two elite European managers to replace Erik ten Hag next summer.

CentreDevils has been informed by an insider that Julian Nagelsmann and Xabi Alonso are United’s two favoured long-term managerial candidates.

Specifically, United’s hierachy are a big fan of Nagelsmann, who currently manages Germany.

The board are aware that it will be difficult to attract Nagelsmann away from his national team setup, as he has expressed a desire to win the World Cup in 2026.

“We want to become world champions”, he said last month, indicating that he plans to be in charge of Germany for at least two more seasons.

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Alonso is coming off the back of an invincible season with Bayer Leverkusen and has attracted interest from many top clubs.

As a former Liverpool player, there was much anticipation at the end of last season that he would succeed Jurgen Klopp as manager.

United fans may not welcome a rival cult hero with open arms, and it is unknown if Alonso himself would want to come to Old Trafford.

Speaking in March, Alonso explained that he has no desire to leave Leverkusen.

“I am a young coach, but right now, I feel this is the right place”, he said.

With this in mind, United have decided that Ruud van Nistelrooy will act as interim manager, should Ten Hag be sacked.

Other names on the list of potential long-term candidates are Thomas Tuchel, Zinedine Zidane, Ruben Amorim and Thomas Frank.

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Manchester United’s Europa League clash with Porto saw the first start for Rasmus Hojlund since the striker returned from injury.

The Denmark international has made a couple of cameo appearances off of the bench recently, with a total of 45 minutes across United’s fixtures with Crystal Palace, FC Twente and Tottenham Hotspur.

With his first game back in the starting line-up, Hojlund took no time in getting himself on the scoreboard.

On the back of Marcus Rashford opening up the scoring, Hojlund linked up with Rashford to grab himself a goal in the twentieth minute.

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However, this early lead was not enough to secure an overall victory.

Goals from Pepe and Samu not only brought Porto back into the game but saw them take the lead, coming into the closing moments of the game looking likely to be the victors.

However, Harry Maguire managed to grab a goal, levelling the scores at 3-3, saving a point for The Red Devils.

Rasmus Hojlund takes to Instagram after the game

With his first goal for United since his injury in the pre-season tour opener with Arsenal in San Diego, Rasmus Hojlund was understandably excited and pleased to be back on the scoreboard.

The striker celebrated by running to the corner flag, pointed up, then to the crowd before turning his back, flexing his shirt and then standing proudly before the fans.

Taking to social media after the game, Hojlund commented: “Luckily I had 6 weeks to practice my celebration.”

However, not everyone was a fan of the comments, with the 21-year-old returning to Instagram to apologise for the post.

In response to some of the feedback he’s received, he commented: “I’ve seen some anger about my post of yesterday.”

He continued: “I never intended that… I was only happy to be back out there on the scoresheet again after a tough few weeks where I couldn’t play and score.

“Obviously we go for the win and I will give everything to make you guys happy, sorry yesterday’s post was not the case.

“Let’s move on, getting ready to give everything again on Sunday.”

Sunday sees United take on Aston Villa in the final Premier League match-up before the October international break. The fixture already had a lot of pressure surrounding it, with more scrutiny on Erik ten Hag recently with the continued run of poor performances.

However, United’s draw with Porto will only have added even more difficulties to the conversations currently taking place on whether Erik ten Hag is the right man for the job at Old Trafford.

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Manchester United have once more added to their youth ranks with the signing of yet another impressive young talent in the form of Chido Obi-Martin.

The Red Devils put significant effort into their youth signings this summer, as well as bolstering their main squad, with a clear view of looking to the future of the club.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is very clear on his aim to turn Old Trafford and Carrington into the centre of youth development in world football.

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Some truly impressive signings were made this summer with the likes of Samuel Lusale joining from Crystal Palace, Sekou Kone from Guidars FC in Mali, not to mention Obi-Martin himself.

The Danish striker is a great signing for The Red Devils, with the 16-year-old being labelled as one of the most exciting prospects to come out of Arsenal’s academy.

Deal for Chido Obi-Martin is finally confirmed

Although news emerged of United signing Chido Obi-Martin over the summer, due to the nature of the transfer, other authorisation was needed first.

As a transfer between youth academies, the signing of the Danish striker needed to receive approval from the Premier League and the Football Association.

Now it seems that the deal has been approved by both, with Manchester United Youth confirming that Obi-Martin has put pen to paper and has signed his first contract with The Red Devils.

The same delay occurred with Lusale, however, the winger has now officially joined United too, already getting his name on the scoresheets with two assists in his debut for the club.

However, the completion of Obi-Martin’s signing marks the final signing awaiting external approval, so the club now have all their new stars at their disposal from this summer’s haul.

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Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has been successful in his appeal of a doping ban from 2023.

Back in 2023, Pogba was hit with a four-year ban from football for taking DHEA, a substance which boosts testosterone and is on WADA’s banned substances list.

The midfielder has now been out of action since the opening game against Udinese in the 2023/24 Serie A season but is now set to return next year.

In the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s (CAS) final judgement, it was confirmed that the France international did inadvertently take DHEA, however, the ruling also states that DHEA only affects females.

Paul Pogba and his team appealed the ruling which took place at CAS’ headquarters in Switzerland. Although the appeal took place back in August, the verdict has only just been returned.

Now The Daily Mail have reported that the appeal has resulted in his four-year ban being reduced to 18 months.

Sports journalist Fabrizio Romano has elaborated on this, explaining that Pogba can begin training with Juventus once again in January, with his earliest return to match action being in March.

Paul Pogba will be back to action in 2025, confirmed!

His 4 year drug ban has been reduced to just 18 months, as @MailSport reported.

Pogba can start training with Juventus in January and then he will be allowed to play official matches by March. pic.twitter.com/THBX9JeXzR

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 4, 2024

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Manchester United’s executive committee is due to be meeting next week in London, only 48 hours after the club’s Premier League fixture with Aston Villa.

Going into the game, all eyes are on Erik ten Hag, who has rising concerns around him as to whether he is the right man to lead at Old Trafford.

The Athletic have reported that the meeting is set to bring Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Sir Dave Brailsford, Omar Berrada, Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox together, with Joel Glazer flying in from the States to be in attendance. Other attendees will be United’s chief operating officer Collette Roche and chief financial officer Roger Bell.

The executive committee are set to meet once a month to discuss the ongoing operations of the club, with nearly all parties being new recruits under Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s new reign at Old Trafford. However, it’s unknown at this time if ten Hag’s role will be discussed at the meeting.

Erik ten Hag’s future in the hands of the executive committee

It’s already been reported that ten Hag’s future lies in the hands of Ratcliffe, Brailsford and Glazer, with the recent performances seeing United drop further and further down both the Premier League and Europa League tables.

Asked about the manager’s future by BBC Sport, Ratcliffe said: “I like Erik. I think he’s a very good coach but at the end of the day, it’s not my call.

“It’s the management team that’s running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.”

Ratcliffe added that Berrada and Ashworth have not long been in their roles and “need to take stock and make some sensible decisions”.

The last executive meeting for United took place in Barcelona in September, during the first stage of the America’s Cup, which Ratcliffe’s INEOS sailing team were competing in.

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Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has taken to his YouTube channel to discuss United’s recent Europa League game with Porto.

The game was yet another draw for The Red Devils, dropping them down to 21st in the Europa League.

Despite being 2-0 up after twenty minutes, United lost the lead, going 3-2 down before Harry Maguire saved a point for the side, with an extra-time goal.

After seven minutes, Marcus Rashford opened up the scoring, adding to his tallies 13 minutes later by assisting Rasmus Hojlund.

With such an early dominance of the game, it looked to be all over for Porto, but unfortunately for Erik ten Hag, this was not to be.

An initial goal from Pepe and another from Samu brought the Portuguese side back into the fray with only 34 minutes on the clock.

After half-time, Samu grabbed his second from a Pepe assist looking like they were headed for the win. However, Maguire came off the bench with only 12 minutes to go and grabbed the final goal just after the 90-minute mark.

The game brought many talking points, namely Bruno Fernandes’ second red card in two games and Marcus Rashford being replaced with Alejandro Garnacho after an impressive first half.

Marcus Rashford’s half-time substitution

As Rashford was playing so well, it seemed hard to believe that replacing the forward was tactical, sparking worries of a potential injury to the 26-year-old who seems to be finally finding his form again.

However, speaking after the game, ten Hag explained that it was tactical and commented: “We have to rotate.”

He continued: “Garnacho, we didn’t start him. He had a great game, not only on Sunday, but I think in the whole season.

“And so we shook them. On Sunday, we have again another hard game, good game. So we need players to be available and be fit and fresh.”

Rio Ferdinand comments on Erik ten Hag’s decision

Speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents, the former United defender has put out his thoughts on ten Hag’s decision to bench Rashford for the second half.

Starting with the positives in the game, Ferdinand said: “I thought the first 20 minutes we looked good, man. I thought it was a good performance. I thought with the ball especially.”

He continued: “I thought Rashford, I think he was direct. I think his goal was… that was Rashford, that was the Rashford I know and you want to see regular.

“Running at people, looked like he was being direct, looked like there was a little bit of confidence that come back. Even his celebration was a bit like, ‘Yeahhhh.’ That’s what I like to see, man.

“But then he’s brought off. I can’t lie, I just think he gets a goal, it’s like before, he scored a couple of goals, then the manager takes him out.

“Then he scores here, building a bit of confidence, yes, I think he could have done better for the Porto second goal, but one of your goalscorers is scoring again. Do you know what I mean?

“He’s in a nice vein of form, building a bit of confidence, building a bit of momentum.”

Marcus Rashford’s slowly finding his form

It seems Ferdinand is concerned that ten Hag’s routine decisions around Rashford are affecting the forward finding his form again.

When the player-turned-pundit visited Carrington recently to interview Erik ten Hag, he commented on how happy Rashford looked in training, with it being common knowledge now that Ruud van Nistelrooy has been working with the forward in one-on-one sessions.

Hopefully, this is just the start of Rashford getting his name on the scoresheet regularly. United will need the forward to keep contributing in their need to get better results as soon as possible.

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After last night’s 3-3 draw to Porto, Manchester United are winless in four games under Erik ten Hag.

They have only won one European game in their last 10, the last coming in October 2023 against Copenhagen.

United sit 13th in the Premier League table after six games and have scored the second fewest goals in the league.

Whether you want to call it ‘relegation form’, ‘mid-table form’ or downright ‘sackable form’, the pressure is undoubtedly mounting on Erik ten Hag.

It has been reported that last night’s game against Porto and Sunday’s trip to Villa park are make-or-break fixtures for the Dutchman’s future.

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Should United lose against Aston Villa, the board have selected an interim manager to take Ten Hag’s place going into the international break.

United plan on making Ruud van Nistelrooy their interim manager until they find a long-term candidate, CentreDevils has been informed by an insider.

Ruud is held in high regard by United’s ownership and players alike, and has won the dressing room in his three months at the club.

He has been particularly helpful in helping Marcus Rashford return to his prolific form, working one-on-one with the England star.

As a result, Rashford has started this season confidently, with six goal contributions in nine games.

Ruud’s tactical vision is also highly respected by other staff members but, as an assistant manager, his influence is limited in United’s play style.

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Another manager being considered by United is former Bayern Munich and Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel.

CentreDevils understands that Tuchel ranks lower on the list of candidates, as he has already rejected an approach from United.

Tuchel was reportedly unimpressed by the club’s transfer policy and declined to join as manager back in the summer.

He felt that United’s board had too much control over transfers, reminding him of his tricky relationship with Chelsea owner Todd Boehly.

With this in mind, United favour Ruud Van Nistelrooy as their primary candidate for the interim manager role.

Sunday may be judgement day for Ten Hag, who has no time to rest, with his departure now looking like a matter of when rather than if.

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