Tag: Football

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As we head into the final few days of the transfer window, new around United’s outgoing stars is truly erupting.

Scott McTominay is set to sign for Napoli, Hannibal Mejbri is headed to Burnley and the race for Jadon Sancho is set to keep going between Juventus and Chelsea.

Whilst Juventus are waiting to sell Frederico Chiesa in order to make a move for Sancho, Chelsea are negotiating a swap deal including Raheem Sterling. The prospect of Sterling moving to United is one that sporting director Dan Ashworth is keen on, with former striker Troy Deeney claiming “he’s better than anything they’ve got there,” referring to the other United wingers.

However, United’s other priority sale is Victor Lindelof, who hasn’t been receiving much interest this summer.

There was early interest from Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce, however any whispers of this seemed to die down.

Then came reports of some Saudi and Italian clubs being interested in the defender, however no clubs were ever named as declaring interest.

Now though, that is all set to change, with one Italian club now looking at the Sweden international to strengthen their defence.

Lazio consider a move for Victor Lindelof

Lazio currently sit in ninth place in Serie A after two games of the season. The Italian club manages to bat Venezia comfortably 3-1 in their opening game of the season, however then lost 2-1 to Udinese this weekend.

Gianluca Di Marzio has reported that the Serie A side are now looking to Lindelof as a way of strengthening their back line to hopefully achieve a better finish than last year’s seventh place.

Unfortunatley, Lindelof has missed the first two games of the Premier League season for United due to an injury he picked up against Liverpool in the pre-season tour of the USA.

The defender will no doubt be hoping to get back to the pitch as soon as possible, but with Matthijs de Ligt now fighting for the same position and Leny Yoro coming into the equation when he’s back from injury, Lindelof may find himself struggling for game time at Old Trafford.

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Christian Eriksen is a true veteran of the Premier League.

His incredible spell at Tottenham from 2013 to 2020 set him up as a true great in football, grabbing 69 goals and 88 assists for Spurs across 305 games in all competitions.

The Denmark international then headed to Inter Milan for €27 million in 2020, however only remained with the club for just under two years, during which time the tragic moment of Euro 2021 took place.

Already an icon in Danish football, Eriksen took to the field  in their opening match facing Finland. However in the 43rd minute Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest having to be taken off the pitch and ruling him out of football until he re-joined the Premier League with Brentford the following January.

With only eight goals and three assists in 60 games for Inter, Eriksen never really continued his form, and his six months a Brentford was much of the same. Whilst it can be put down to regaining his fitness following his heart problems, Eriksen only got a goal and four assists in 11 games, then moving to United on a free transfer.

However, since moving to Old Trafford, he still hasn’t risen to the heights we saw at Tottenham. The Dane has played a total of 72 games for United across the last two years, with only three goals and 13 assists, ultimately falling out of favour with Erik ten hag.

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Now, his lack of game time is raising concerns around his place in the Danish national team.

Lars Knudsen speaks out about Christian Eriksen at United

Lars Knudsen is the current interim coach for the Denmark national team, holding the fort until a new head coach is appointed. However, with the Nations League fixtures soon coming up in September, Knudsen has selected Eriksen to play in these matches.

This may not be the same going forwards though. With Eriksen’s lack of game time and more international games coming up in October and November, Knudsen can only be so understanding of Eriksen’s reputation.

Speaking to Bold about the situation, Knudsen said: “Christian is a player who can still contribute a lot. We also saw that during the European Championships.”

However, he continued: “But it is clear that his current situation is unsustainable in the long run.

“I hope Christian will play football. Whether it’s at Manchester United or somewhere else, time will tell, the fact is that he has to play more.”

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The day is finally here, with Manuel Ugarte’s move to Manchester United likely to complete today as the Uruguayan travels for his medical assessment.

The deal has been agreed for €50 million (£42.3 million) plus an additional €10 million (£8.4 million) in add-ons related to performance and success. Whilst PSG initially wanted a fixed transfer fee of €60 million (£50.7 million) it appears they are now happy for this to include the bonuses.

With the midfielder set to partner Kobbie Mainoo in the middle of the pitch, speculation is starting to arise around what number he’ll be wearing.

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United have made a number of new signings this year, with Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui all moving to Old Trafford before Ugarte. Unfortunately, this has take a lot of the available numbers, leaving little spare for the midfielder.

Zirkzee is United’s new number 11 with Rasmus Hojlund moving to the new number 9 replacing Anthony Martial. Leny Yoro has taken on the number 15 shirt in place of Sergio Reguilon, whilst the Bayern duo of Mazraoui and de Ligt are the new numbers 3 and 4 with 3 being vacant and 4 being worn by loanee Sofyan Amrabat.

So, what is left for Ugarte?

Well, the lowest number remaining is number 13, although that’s usually picked up by a goalkeeper. Following this we have number 19, with the next lowest being 26 which starts a run of vacancies to 34.

After this, the available options are 38, 40, 42, 45 and anything above 47.

However, we could still see some other numbers come availabe.

Scott McTominay is the current number 39, Hannibal Mejbri is 46 and Jadon Sancho is 25, all of which United are looking to offload this week.

It’s also thought that the Red Devils are still trying to sell Christian Eriksen, which would free up the number 14 shirt for Ugarte who wore this briefly when starting at PSG.

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As transfer deadline day gets even closer, the excitement of the transfer window heats up with more twists and turns before the market closes.

Manchester United are on the verge of signing their top transfer target, Manuel Ugarte from PSG, whilst Scott McTominay is on his way out of the door to Napoli.

Elsewhere though, the Red Devils are still trying to push for a departure for Jadon Sancho.

It has been believed that Juventus were in the hot spot to sign the winger, however they could only do so by selling Frederico Chiesa who Liverpool are now interested in.

News is starting to emerge of Manchester United’s sporting director Dan Ashworth discussing a potential player swap with Chelsea that would see Sancho move to London.

The Telegraph have now reported that Manchester United have opened talks over a deal for Raheem Sterling, but will only agree to a swap for Sancho on their own terms.

It’s understood that Ashworth opened up conversations with Chelsea earlier on Tuesday over a deal to see the English wingers trade places.

With the extensive collection of players currently at Stamford Bridge, Sterling has found himself out of Enzo Maresca’s plans and United are looking to capitalise on this. Ashworth is hoping that, with a swap for Sancho, United can secure the Premier League’s third-highest scorer currently playing in the league.

However, the big issue currently is around Sterling’s wages. The 29-year-old is on more than £300,000 per week at Chelsea, with United trying to make cuts across the board to meet with PSR regulations.

United are currently struggling to offload Sancho due to similar issues, with his wage demands being the main barrier that a lot of clubs have been struggling to overcome and so have retracted their interest.

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When Sir Jim Ratcliffe took over their minority share earlier this year, the INEOS owner set out his desire to bring Manchester United to the top of football once more, whilst also making the club financially sustainable under PSR rules.

Ratcliffe has already made an incredible amount of changes to try and cut back on costs, including the 250 redundancies made across the club.

At the start of the summer, Ratcliffe drew up a shortlist of seven players to offload in order to try and generate £200 million in transfer funds. The list comprised of Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Christian Eriksen, Casemiro, Antony, Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood.

Whilst Greenwood is the only one of the shortlist to be sold, United have managed to part ways with another number of players, so lets look at the deals and the implications of this.

Mason Greenwood – Greenwood moved to Marseille earlier this summer for a fee of £26.7 million, saving his salary of £79,000 per week (£4.1 million per year).

Aaron Wan-Bissaka – Wan-Bissaka moved to West Ham United for £15 million, saving a salary of £100,000 per week (£5.2 million per year).

Willy Kambwala – Kambwala signed for Villarreal at the start of the summer for £9.7 million, saving a salary of £1,400 per week (£72,800 per year).

Facundo Pellistri – Pellistri joined Panathinaikos in the last few weeks, signing for £6.8 million, saving a salary of £27,000 per week (£1.4 million per year).

Alvaro Carreras – Carreras was the first of United’ summer sales to Benfica for £6 million, although his salary is unknown.

Donny van de Beek – van de Beek moved to Girona after several loan spells for a fee of £500,000, saving a salary of £140,000 per week (£7.3 million per year).

Will Fish – Fish moved to Cardiff City for £1 million, although his salary is unknown.

Scott McTominay – Whilst McTominay’s move to Napoli is still pending, it’s understood the sale has been agreed for £25 million, with a salary saving of £78,000 per week (£4 million per year).

Hannibal Mejbri – Another pending transfer is Hannibal to Burnley for £9.5 million, with a salary saving of £13,000 per week (£676,000 per year).

Maxi Oyedele – There’s also Oyedele who has moved to Legia Warsaw, however his transfer fee is undisclosed.

Raphael Varane – Varane left on a free transfer this summer and has since joined Italian side Como. By not renewing his contract, United have saved £350,000 per week in wages (£18.2 million per year).

Anthony Martial – Similar to Varane, Martial was let go this summer with the club not wishing to extend his contract, saving the club £250,000 per week (£13 million per year).

So, of the fees and salaries we know, providing the McTominay and Hannibal deals go ahead, United have generated £100.2 million through transfer fees, with a further £54.6 million a year saved in transfer fees.

We’re also aware that the sale of Jadon Sancho is still on the cards with Juventus interested, which could bring in a further £33.8 million, saving £14.3 million a year in wages.

If this goes thought as well, it would bring the totals to a staggering £134 million in transfer fees and a saving of £68.9 million a year in wages, bringing the combined total to £202.9 million in newly available funds, as intended by Ratcliffe’s initial list.

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Former Manchester United defender, Rio Ferdinand, has come out to raise concern with one of the club’s recent transfers.

The 45-year-old spent 12 years at United after a €46 million move from Leeds United, and ultimately joined QPR on a free transfer.

During his time at Old Trafford, the centre-back helped the club to seure six Premier League titles, four Community Shields, three English League Cups, one Champions League trophy and a FIFA Club World Cup. Across the 455 games that Ferdinand played for United, he was even entrusted with the captain’s armband from time to time.

However, the player-turned-pundit has now taken to his YouTube channel to voice his displeasure in the selling of Scott McTominay.

McTominay is currently on his way to Italy to complete a medical assessment ahead of his move to Napoli for £25 million.

Whilst McTominay has never been a key starting XI player for United, his contributions off of the bench have been vital. Last season saw his career best of ten goals across all competitions, with further impressive performances at Euro 2024 despite Scotland being knocked out in the group stage.

Speaking of the midfielder’s transfer, Ferdinand said: “I look at Scott McTominay and like not every player can be a star standout player or a franchise player. I always say this, to win the league you need the likes of a John O’Shea, a Wes Brown, Darren Fletcher, Chicharito, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer from when we were at United.”

Explaining the importance of having player like this, he continued: “Those players are huge, you need those players and they understand the DNA especially the ones who come through the academy, Man United have always stood by that.

“It really doesn’t sit well with me, to replace him you are going to have to spend, 30, 40, £50m and it’s not going to be cheap to replace him.

“It’s a gamble, you don’t what you’re going to get with that next player, whereas with him you know what you’re getting, it’s on the tin, he turns up when he’s playing, might not always be an eight or nine out of ten but he is a good solid seven and every now and then he will be an eight and get you a goal.”

It’s very clear from Ferdinand’s comments that he feels this will be a massive blow for United over time, so the Red Devils will be hoping that players like Mason Mount can step up so that McTominay doesn’t need to be replaced.

Scott McTominay Represents Manchester United DNA….#MUFC pic.twitter.com/B9lx4e7wsq

— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) August 26, 2024

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News has just broke that Paris Saint-Germain midfielder and summer long Manchester United transfer target, Manuel Ugarte, is all set to move to Old Trafford.

According to David Ornstein, Manuel Ugarte currently travelling today (August 27) to complete his medical assessment ahead of completing a proposed move to Old Trafford.

The deal has been agreed for €50 million (£42.3 million) plus a further €10 million (£8.4 million) in add-ons. Whilst PSG initially wanted €60 million (£50.7 million) as a fixed transfer fee, it appears that United have managed to negotiate this to include the performance based add-on.

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Yesterday saw United’s technical director Jason Wilcox fly out to Paris, presumably to get the deal across the line. he was photographed at Manchester Airport waiting for a flight to Paris, however no details were revealed as to his travel intentions.

United’s move for the Uruguayan international has linked with the Red Devils confirming a deal with Napoli to part ways with Scott McTominay. The Italian club agreed to a transfer fee in the region €30 million (£25.4 million) for the Scotland international.

The completion of signing Manuel Ugarte marks the first midfield signing that United have made this summer. Whilst there have been links with AS Monaco’s Youssouf Fofana, Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong, Burnley’s Sander Berge and Sporting Lisbon’s Morten Hjulmand, all eyes have truly been on Ugarte as their prized target.

With the Uruguay international being much more of an aggressive defensive midfielder, spotting an opportunity to win a ball back and then relentlessly fighting for it, United are hoping he’ll be the perfect partner for Kobbie Mainoo.

Whilst the pair have differing play styles, they could complement each other extremely well in the middle of the pitch.

With the move looking to be completed today, we could potentially see Ugarte take to the pitch this Sunday in United’s next Premier League game against rivals, Liverpool.

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Recent news surrounding the move of Manuel Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain to Manchester United suggest the deal is as good as done.

The Red Devils have been closely monitoring Ugarte throughout the summer, aiming to bolster their midfield options.

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In recent developments, reports indicate that a deal with Paris Saint-Germain for the 23-year-old Uruguayan midfielder is nearly finalized, following prolonged negotiations where the two clubs initially struggled to reach a compromise.

Ugarte himself is believed to have agreed on personal terms as far back as July, further fueling speculation about his future.

Reports also suggest that Manuel Ugarte is on standby, awaiting the green light to travel to Manchester, where he is expected to undergo his medical and finalize the contract.

With only five days remaining in the transfer window, Manchester United’s chances of enhancing their midfield for the 2024-25 season hinge on the swift resolution of the Ugarte discussions.

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The urgency is clear, as United’s current squad depth in midfield has raised concerns among fans and pundits alike, especially in light of their recent performances.

Jason Wilcox flying to Paris

Manchester United’s technical director, Jason Wilcox, was spotted at Manchester Airport earlier today, preparing to board a flight to Paris.

Jason Wilcox waiting at Manchester airport.

While the reason for his trip wasn’t officially disclosed, it’s quite clear that Wilcox is heading to Paris to finalize the deal for Manuel Ugarte.

Wilcox reportedly boarded his flight at 1 p.m. this afternoon, sparking speculation that he will be in discussions with PSG to close the Ugarte transfer, especially with the transfer window closing in less than a week.

This move comes on the heels of United agreeing to a deal with Napoli for Scott McTominay, which is expected to pave the way for Ugarte’s arrival.

The next few hours will be critical, and fans may soon hear a “here we go” from Fabrizio Romano regarding this deal.

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The end of the transfer window is now in sight as we enter it’s final week, with the saga that has been the signing of Manuel Ugarte nearly at an end.

News has just broken that Jason Wilcox has flown to Paris with an undisclosed purpose that is clearly to finalise the deal for Ugarte. With only four days left for transfers to complete, the urgency to sign their key target couldn’t be more pressing.

The deal is now being reported as a permanent purchase if Scott McTominay’s move to Napoli goes to plan, generating the funds for the signing of the Uruguayan. Prior to this, it’s understood United were looking at a loan with obligation to buy in order to kick the transfer payment down the line to next summer.

However, with Ugarte’s permanent move nearly across the line, he may not be the last signing of the summer for Manchester United.

In an recent exclusive, Fabrizio Romano discussed United’s potential further dips into the transfer market.

The sports journalist claimed that United have not firmly closed the door on other transfers, saying: “In terms of other business, it will depend.”

He continued: “Maybe some player leaves, there could still be space for something last minute for Manchester United.

“Nothing 100% confirmed yet, so Man United will decide [this] week based on opportunities, but I would keep the door always open for last minute opportunities.”

The players that he’s referring to are of course Jadon Sancho and Hannibal Mejbri, with Mejbri off to Burnley to replace Sander Berge and Sancho having a range of suitors.

Earlier today it was revealed that Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund have joined the clubs interested in Sancho, however front runners are still Juventus and Chelsea.

It’s unlikely that United will look for replacements for these two, with neither featuring in the Red Devils’ two opening Premier League games, however, no-one can ever truly predict the last minute deals on deadline day.

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Manchester United have made some incredible signings for their academy this summer, with as much of a focus on their youth recruits as there is on their senior transfers.

The highlights of this recruitment drive have got to be Chido Obi-Martin from Arsenal and Sekou Kone from Mali side Guidars.

However, while the academy’s recruitment has been a clear priority for the club, unfortunately it’s not been the same for the club’s coverage of the academy.

Last season the Under-21s team had only eight of their 24 matches televised on MUTV, with the treble winning Under-18s side celebrating their Premier League North title in an non-broadcasted match.

This season unfortunately appears to be on the same track if not worse.

Whilst last year the club used their  their main Twitter channel to reveal line-ups and score updates, this year hasn’t received anything similar.

Across the Under-18s and Under-21s teams, four matches have been played, yet no matches have been broadcast so far, with three more this week, unfortunately none feature in the MUTV schedule.

In a confusing state of affairs, the club’s official account posted on X that one of the games would be broadcast live on MUTV, however this never came through, suggesting that even the club staff don’t known what MUTV is or isn’t showing.

So far, the only way of seeing this weekend’s Under-18s match against rivals Manchester City is to watch it through Manchester City’s CITY+.

Further to this, the United website has a highlights section for the academy, yet no footage has been released of the current season. But it’s not just the highlights section that is missing things, the Under-18s page on the official app and website is missing half the squad and their first year scholars.

To put this into perspective, other clubs like Arsenal have a dedicated social media team for their academy. This team provide match reports and highlights for their Under-18s and Under-21s squads.

Arsenal even held pre-season matches for fans to attend to seen the youth recruits in action, whilst United’s games were all played behind closed doors, with no reports coming from them.

The Peoples Person have reported that in an attempt to understand the lack of coverage, the club have blamed licencing restrictions which haven’t actually applied to the untelevised games, as well as suggesting a priority on the first team pre-season coverage.

However, journalist Steven Railston has taken to X to say: “Unfortunately, I think it’s due to recent job losses at the club.”

Earlier in the summer it was revealed that United were cutting 250 employees from the club in an effort to recoup funds for the first team squad, generating tens of millions of pounds.

If the lack of covered of the academy is indeed down to the redundancies Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been making, then it could well have an adverse effect of the large number of fans subscribing to MUTV.

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