Category: Sports

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Manchester United may have got all three points against Everton in the Premier League on Saturday but the performance was far from convincing.

United remain eight points behind Aston Villa in fourth albeit having played a game more and three points behind Tottenham Hotspur, who have played two games less.

Considering the club’s recent form, fourth place looks out of the question. Manager Erik ten Hag is now hoping a fifth place finish is enough to ensure Champions League qualification but even that looks tricky.

Winning the FA Cup could mean securing a place in the Europa League but even that will be difficult with Liverpool the opponents in the quarterfinals.

EtH’s uncertain future

The Dutch manager’s future is on shaky grounds and INEOS are said to be looking at multiple options should they decide to move on from him at the end of the campaign.

Despite a chastening sophomore season, Ten Hag’s win record at United places him on top of all the managers that the club has employed in the past.

He will be hot property should INEOS move him on and previous reports had indicated Bayer Leverkusen and Ajax could swoop.

However as TeamTalk have now revealed, a return to his former club will not be very easy for the 54-year-old due to Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders also being a candidate for the job.

Jurgen Klopp has given a ringing endorsement of his number two, calling him “most influential” and “exceptional”, and with a summer departure already decided, no compensation will be be due.

“Ajax are keeping him (Ten Hag) in mind, with their recently appointed technical director Alex Kroes – who until recently was a shareholder in the agency that looks after the current Man Utd manager – adding Ten Hag to their shortlist of coaching targets.

EtH vs Lijnders

“Their approach would be solely dependent on Man Utd dismissing Ten Hag first, since they are not willing to pay compensation for the 54-year-old.

“They would not have to pay any compensation to appoint Lijnders instead, meanwhile, since he will be leaving Liverpool at the same time as Jurgen Klopp in the summer.

“Lijnders is ready for another attempt at being a head coach. Klopp recently backed him, saying: “Pep especially is ready – ready to manage a football team and he wants to do that as well, so that’s great.”

Losing out on an emotional return to a former Liverpool coach will be a huge blow if it ever comes down to that.

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Despite the much-needed three points against Everton, Manchester United’s performance was once again quite poor and the win was largely thanks to the inept finishing from the visitors.

The Toffees, who are yet to win a game in 2024, had 23 shots as compared to the hosts but still failed to trouble Andre Onana in goal.

United were lax in possession and struggled while playing out from the back each time with the club’s highest earners, Raphael Varane and Casemiro putting in disappointing shifts.

The Frenchman struggled with his passing playing as the left-sided centre-back and he is much more adept on the right, where he has played for most of his career.

Erik ten Hag will point to the clean-sheet as vindication for such a strange tactical tweak but the former Real Madrid defender has not looked as imperious with Lisandro Martinez not beside him.

New CB needed

His current deal ends in June and United opted not to trigger the one-year extension option and instead could go for a new deal on reduced wages.

The 30-year-old does have the option of heading to Saudi Arabia where a host of clubs are eager to secure his signature and whatever happens, the Red Devils need a long-term partner for the Argentine.

One player who has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester since the summer is Jean-Clair Todibo of OGC Nice, a club owned by INEOS, who are now the minority stakeholders at Old Trafford.

The former Barcelona star had been linked with quite a few clubs due to his impressive displays last season and in the first-half of the current campaign.

But Nice’s form has fallen off a cliff recently, and from leading Ligue 1 in autumn, the club are currently in fifth having lost seven of their last 12 games.

On Friday, they lost 2-1 at home to Montpellier, which prompted an angry response from the home faithful. The France international was the subject of chants from Nice ultras who have not been too impressed with the constant rumours emanating regarding the player’s future.

After the full-time whistle, Nice supporters sang: “If you’re not happy, leave the club,” towards the 24-year-old who also scored an unfortunate own goal in the game.

Altercation with fans

90min described the ugly post-match scenes and claimed an altercation between the player and the fans was avoided with club captain Dante taking Todibo away to the safety of the dressing room.

“As the players went over to clap the ultras in the home end, Todibo had to be pulled away by some of his teammates after approaching the stands in anger.

“He was then whistled and jeered before being dragged back towards the dressing room by club captain and centre-back partner Dante, while some fans tried to climb over the fences and confront Todibo on the pitch.”

More than the defence, it has been their lack of goals that has let Nice down. They have scored five times in the New Year. Fans will not be pleased if he ends up leaving in the summer considering defence has been their strong suit.

This latest spate could signal an end to the player’s stay in French Riviera and United could prosper using the INEOS connection.

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Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay is reportedly at risk of losing about £1m that he had invested in a business owned by his partner’s father.

According to The Sun, the United man pumped in a huge sum of money to Fortress Capital Partners – a business that went bust last year.

It’s understood that the firm is operated by McTominay’s partner, Cameron Reading and her father, Ashley.

The newspaper reveals that Fortress Capital Partners owes up to £18million to multiple investors.

It borrowed from these investors and lent it out at higher interest rates.

“The Readings also splashed out millions on luxury investment properties in the UK, Dubai and Spain. McTominay, 27, lent Fortress £1million to buy one in Portugal.”

“The Scottish midfielder now stands to get back just £100,000 after administrators confirmed investors are expected to get just 10p of every £1 they put in.”

The Sun adds that McTominay’s partner, who is popularly known as “Cam”, has angered some investors by sharing her luxurious lifestyle on social media despite owing the firm around £1.2million.

The newspaper relays that a source told them, “There is a photo of Cam blowing a kiss with a glass of Champagne at a Claridge’s hotel room with Scott. It really rubs salt in the wound for those of us who’ve lost our life savings or face losing their homes.”

“There’s another pic from Instagram of Ashley, his wife, Cam and her sister. They always seemed to be going on holiday. At one point, they were in Dubai for months and months.”

It’s believed that Cam was forced to sell assets in Dubai and Spain to help settle the arrears.

The Sun notes that McTominay’s agent was contacted for comment on the matter. The Scotland international was in action for United as the Red Devils managed to beat Everton 2-0 at Old Trafford on Saturday.

First-half penalty goals from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford proved to be enough as United got back to winning ways.

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Manchester United returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a 2-0 victory against Everton at Old Trafford on Saturday.

Despite the three points, the performance levels were once again poor with the two highest-earners at the club letting Erik ten Hag down this time.

Casemiro’s form has been a concern since the season started and he does not look apt for the manager’s current fascination with high transitions.

His injury in the first half of the campaign prompted the manager to throw Kobbie Mainoo into the deep end and the academy ace has come out with shining colours.

Mainoo’s breakthrough

From an impressive debut at a raucous Goodison Park, to being the best midfielder at the club with the Brazilian also on the pitch, the 18-year-old has come a long way.

The academy sensation picked up the goal of the month award for his Fergie time winner against Wolverhampton Wanderers last month and his form has already triggered an international tug of war between England and Ghana for his services.

There are murmurs of a potential European Championship call-up with Gareth Southgate keeping an eye on the England U19 international.

He always seems to have an extra second on the ball and even under pressure, he invariably makes the right decision which is rare to see at this age.

Mainoo’s form has impressed United’s all-time top-scorer Wayne Rooney as well, who has found resemblances between the youngster’s playing style and that of his former United teammate and World Cup winner Bastian Schweinsteiger.

“I think he’s incredible for such a young age, with the maturity he’s shown,” Rooney told TNT Sports. “When you see any young players come into the first team they’re normally a bit raw or play off the cuff.

Huge compliment

“He reminds me of a young Bastian Schweinsteiger with how he plays, and he always seems to make the right decisions. He has a very bright future.”

An eight-time Bundesliga winner and one-time Champions League winner with Bayern Munich, the German’s energy and ability to slot into any midfield role made him a global superstar.

However, his legs had given way by the time he landed in Manchester but he still did win an FA Cup with the Red Devils and remains a keen supporter of the club.

Mainoo’s comparison with such a legend of the game highlights what a prospect the club have on their hands and they are desperate to keep him at the club with talks ongoing regarding a contract extension.

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Manchester United are looking increasingly likely to miss out on transfer and recruitment expert Michael Edwards, who is reportedly edging closer to making a return to Liverpool.

Following confirmation that Sir Jim Ratcliffe had completed his 27.7% partial investment into United, all attention turned towards putting in place the right structure that will oversee the radical overhaul of the club’s sporting operations.

Already, United secured the services of Omar Berrada from city rivals Manchester City.

Newcastle’s Dan Ashworth is understood to be INEOS’ top target for a maiden sporting director role at Old Trafford. Negotiations remain ongoing with the Magpies, who placed their executive on gardening leave in direct response to United making a formal approach for him.

Dougie Freedman of Crystal Palace has been mentioned to be in the running for a head of recruitment position at the club, with Southampton’s Jason Wilcox being tipped to come in as technical director.

Edwards was one of the individuals INEOS and Ratcliffe were thought to be keen on while they were assessing which individuals to pursue for top jobs at United.

In January, it was relayed that Ratcliffe’s move for Edwards failed because of the transfer expert’s hefty wage demands, which were deemed too unrealistic

Recently, a report covered by The Peoples Person revealed that the Red Devils have held talks with Ludonautics, the sports advisory and statistical analysis business run by Liverpool’s former Director of Research Dr Ian Graham and Edwards.

When Edwards left Liverpool in the summer of 2022 after his contract expired, it’s believed he turned down multiple job offers in favour of working at Ludonautics, where he is a non-executive director.

David Ornstein previously reported that Liverpool had contacted Edwards to explore the possibility of him returning to Anfield to lead a new sports project now that Jurgen Klopp is set to leave. However, he turned them down.

Ornstein has now given an update and indicated that Liverpool bosses kept pushing and seem to have made a breakthrough in their efforts to convince Edwards to come back.

“Michael Edwards is close to agreeing a senior role with Fenway Sports Group, which would include the former Liverpool executive taking oversight of the club’s football operations. Liverpool are in the midst of a huge transition following manager Jurgen Klopp’s decision to step aside this summer, with his closest staff also scheduled to leave and sporting director Jorg Schmadtke already having departed.”

“If Edwards accepts FSG’s offer, the sporting director position is expected to be filled by Richard Hughes, whose exit as Bournemouth technical director was confirmed on Wednesday.”

“FSG targeted Edwards to spearhead the restructure — floating the idea of him occupying a top job at Liverpool or inside the ownership group — but he initially turned down the opportunity. However, the US group continued its pursuit and Edwards is now on course to join in a far broader capacity that encompasses Liverpool, rather than specifically returning to Anfield.”

Ornstein adds that while a deal is not yet complete, a definitive resolution is likely to be found early next week.

Interestingly, The Athletic note that Edwards has always been adamant that he is no longer interested in becoming a sporting director. His wish has always been to have a wider scope that would allow him to empower other club chiefs and those tasked with the day-to-day responsibilities of running a club.

This could also explain why he never really came close to joining United and becoming part of Ratcliffe’s regime.