News Thread

Manchester United kicked off 2023 in tremendous form, with a 3-0 win over Bournemouth that saw Erik ten Hag and his team move into fourth place in the Premier League table. Goals from Casemiro, Luke Shaw and Marcus Rashford confirmed an easy evening for the Old Trafford side, as they quickly shook off the departure of Cristiano Roanldo last month and continued their march up the English top-flight table. 

Manchester United seem to have finally found their new no.9 in Dutch forward Wout Weghorst. Linked with a move from Besiktas—where he is on loan from Burnley—to Man United all week, Italian football expert Fabrizio Romano reported on Tuesday that there was now a major breakthrough in negotiations. Should the deal be completed, Besiktas will receive €3 million to terminate the loan early, and Weghorst will join Man United on loan from Burnley instead. 

Arsenal’s dramatic 3-2 victory over Manchester United on Sunday felt like a seismic moment in the Premier League title race, as the North London club not only reached 50 points at the half-way stage of the season but also passed yet another test of their credentials as genuine title challengers. Erik ten Hag’s side undoubtedly came close to bringing an abrupt halt to Mikel Arteta ambitions of being the first Arsenal manager to lift the league title in 19 years, but were ultimately undone when Arsenal stepped up a gear and proved to be more than enough for their historic foes. And as we’ve seen multiple times this season, this big-game mentality seems to be the real momentum behind such an unexpected title challenge. 

While Manchester United fans can be relatively happy with the performance their team put in despite their 3-2 defeat to league leaders Arsenal on Sunday, there was one player in particular that continued to frustrate the away support. Aside from the obvious absence of Casemiro, the Red Devils were constantly frustrated not only by the speed and efficiency of Mikel Arteta’s team, but also the lack of any cutting edge from new signing Antony. 

Marcel Sabitzer could leave Bayern Munich for the Premier League on deadline day. Transfermarkt can confirm an initial report by Sky Germany that Manchester United are interested in a last-minute transfer in order to replace the injured Christian Eriksen. Chelsea are also interested but, for now, are focused on other targets. Bild has also reported that Sabitzer is on the verge of joining United. The Austrian was not training with the club on Tuesday and wants to leave. 

To no great surprise, Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford struggled to hold back his ambitions for the second half of the season, following an impressive 3-0 win over Leicester City on Sunday. The England forward had scored his club’s first two goals of the afternoon and when asked if his side had now fought their way into the Premier League title race, the 25-year-old talent didn’t exactly say no. 

Erik Ten Hag was the happiest man in England on Sunday evening, following his Manchester United side’s 2-0 win over Newcastle United to win the English League Cup and bring an end to a disastrous six-year spell without a trophy for the Old Trafford club. And, among the Dutch manager’s star-studded squad, one player in particular truly stood out as the deciding factor on the day. 

Jürgen Klopp has great respect for the turnaround Erik Ten Hag has achieved at Manchester United this season, but the Liverpool manager will have absolutely no problem bursting their bubble when they make the trip to Anfield on Sunday. And the 55-year-old tactician admitted as much at a press conference on Friday afternoon. 

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham may not yet be the best player in the world, but he’s certainly one of the most popular. Like Christian Pulisic, Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland before him, the Bundesliga talent has lit up German football with ease and is now the subject of reported interest from just about every major club in European football. 

On Monday, Bayer Leverkusen announced that they had signed the Brazilian national team right-back Arthur from América. That transfer, in turn, led to speculations that Dutch wing-back Jeremie Frimpong could be sold in the summer. The 22-year-old Dutch national team player has been pushing for a move for some time, and there have been first positive talks with Manchester United already.