The Chuck Norris of football, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is unrivalled. There is no other Zlatan. The 37-year-old has played for a number of the biggest sides in European football, and has won countless trophies wherever he’s gone. Not to mention his ridiculous goal-scoring record too.
The veteran forward had an impressive stint at Manchester United when he joined the club as a free agent in the summer of 2016. His first season in English football saw him rack up 28 goals and ten assists across all competitions, helping the Red Devils to a Europa League and League Cup triumph.
Now, as quoted by Sky Sports, the LA Galaxy star has insisted he could still “easily” play in the Premier League, and opened the door for a United return, if they still “need” him.
After hearing Ibrahimovic’s comments, United fans flooded to Twitter, and there appeared to be a unanimous sense of wanting the Swede to swagger on back to Old Trafford.
Many supporters of the Manchester side admitted they wanted the “lion” back, and insisted he could still deliver on the pitch.
Indeed, some suggested the 37-year-old could play a vital role in helping the likes of Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood to develop, whilst others claimed the team simply needed him for his “mentality”.
Check out some of the reaction of United fans below:
Having arrived from Benfica back in 2017, Victor Lindelof has had a mixed career at Manchester United so far.
The 25-year-old initially struggled with the adaptation to English football, but has emerged as one of the Red Devils’ better defenders over the past 12 to 18 months.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has used him as Harry Maguire’s first-choice centre-back partner this season, and the 6 foot 2 star has taken his promising early form into international duty with Sweden.
Lindelof struck a superb volley against the Faroe Islands on Thursday as his country registered a comfortable 4-0 win in their EURO 2020 qualifying clash.
After seeing the 25-year-old’s fine strike, United fans took to Twitter to hail the centre-back.
Many supporters of the Manchester side felt Marcus Rashford would have missed an opportunity like that, and suggested the England international “would have blasted that one into the stands”.
Some Red Devils fans even urged Lindelof to bring that kind of goal-scoring form back to Old Trafford, whilst others joked he should be played further forward from now on.
Check out some of the reaction of United fans below:
One of Manchester United’s flag-bearers for the current youth revolution Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is trying to implement, Scott McTominay has really established himself as a key member of the first-team squad at Old Trafford.
The 22-year-old enjoyed a break-through year under Jose Mourinho in the 2017/2018 campaign, registering 27 appearances across all competitions for the club.
Under Solskjaer, things have been no different, with McTominay playing in every single one of United’s opening four Premier League games this season.
The midfielder has already made ten appearances at international level for Scotland, but his last outing for the side on Friday night certainly won’t go down as one of the better ones.
Steve Clarke’s men slipped to a 2-1 defeat to Russia, and Scotland fans took to Twitter to criticise McTominay’s role in the game.
Many supporters questioned how the 22-year-old had managed to “hoodwink” everyone into becoming a starter for both United and Scotland.
Some fans even compared McTominay and ex-Red Devil Darren Fletcher, and insisted the former shares a similar quality of not really offering anything.
Check out some of the reaction of Scotland fans below:
[ad_pod ]Paul Pogba is an easy target.We all know it. The Frenchman can’t seem to go a game in a Manchester United shirt without receiving some form of criticism from either the national press, an army of social media critics or his biggest fan Graeme Souness.Before the current season had even started, the former Liverpool manager was already laying into his foe. Start as you mean to go on and all that jazz.When the Frenchman missed a potentially decisive penalty against Wolves, it was hardly surprised then that his gang of unrelenting witch hunters were out in force. Former United captain Gary Neville called the situation “embarrassing†on Sky Sports Monday Night Football (via Standard).Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below
Ross Barkley missed an equally important spot-kick on Tuesday night in Chelsea’s Champions League tie against Valencia. Much like the Pogba debacle, he snatched the ball from his teammates, who in this case were Willian and Jorginho, and proceeded to balloon his opportunity against the bar. The Blues would go on to lose the game 1-0.
What is different, however, is the backlash; there’s no national media witch hunt or pitchfork-wielding protesters outside his property. Relatively speaking, Barkley has got off lightly. And this is something the pundits over at talkSPORT have noticed…
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Expert Roundup feature, which provides three quotes from those in the know in order to illuminate fundamental strengths, weaknesses, quirks, stylistic comparisons and general observations of players, transfer targets and confirmed signings.
Having had to sit out the opening two matches of the Premier League season through suspension, Tottenham Hotspur attacker Son Heung-min appears to be taking his frustration out on his opponents following his excellent display in the 4-0 win against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
The 27-year-old found the net twice and played a significant role in Erik Lamela’s goal too, and he continues to shine alongside England captain Harry Kane in a striking role for Spurs.
His latest performance certainly gained attention from plenty of pundits, who were quick to deliver their expert view on the South Korea international.
Micky Hazard
Former Tottenham player Hazard tweeted:
‘What a player Son is hey, I just love the way he plays the game always a smile on his face, even when he’s getting kicked ( except Bournemouth last year lol ). Such a pleasure to watch him play COYS’.
Micah Richards
Meanwhile, former England international Richards told BBC Final Score, via HITC:
“I think Son is becoming their most important player. When Kane was injured last season, Spurs seemed to play with more of a freedom. Kane is still number one in my eyes. He’s amazing.
“But you know sometimes when Spurs are away from home and it’s a little slow. I would play with an Eriksen, Son, Lucas Moura and Lamela just for some creativity and not looking to hit the main man always.
“Let’s not take anything away from Harry Kane because his goal record is incredible. I just like the way Son moves, Lamela and Lucas Moura.”
Garth Crooks
Lastly, another former Spurs player in Crooks picked Son for his team of the week on BBC Sport.
‘I can’t believe Son has not scored a hat-trick in the Premier League. If anyone deserves to have that statistic firmly emblazoned on his CV it is the South Korea international. Son was electric against a Crystal Palace side who are blowing hot and cold these days and, against Spurs, were freezing.’
Verdict
Nothing too out of the ordinary there really, although Richards’ comment about him becoming Tottenham’s most important player is an interesting one.
When you consider Kane is such a great goalscorer and the strong defensive nous the partnership of Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld provide, Son certainly has some stiff competition for that particular accolade.
But he has shown time and time again in recent seasons that he is a player that can make the difference when things perhaps aren’t going the north London outfit’s way, scoring some vitally important goals along the way.
It’s a big claim from Richards, but he might just be right based on this form.
In today’s Manchester United roundup, we take a look at the hottest stories out there right now involving the Red Devils. Victor Lindelof signs a new deal, United legend Paul Scholes states Paul Pogba won’t be a ‘big loss’, and academy graduates Mason Greenwood and Jesse Lingard are set for contract talks.
Lindelof commits to United
Report: As confirmed by United’s official website, centre-back Lindelof has signed a new deal with the club, which will see him stay at Old Trafford until at least June 2024, with an option of another year.
The Swede said: “Since the day I arrived at United it has felt like home. I have grown significantly both as a player and as a person in the last two years and for that I am grateful to everyone at the club for their help and support. I know that everyone at the club shares this vision and will give everything to get Manchester United back to where it belongs.”
Verdict: This an important deal for United. The club have certainly lacked defensive stability recently, setting a new record for most Premier League goals conceded last season with 54. However, Lindelof emerged as one of United’s more reliable throughout 2018/19 – evidenced in the fact he featured in all but eight league games.
And it appears Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is attempting to build a partnership between the ex-Benfica man and summer signing Harry Maguire, with both men playing every league minute together so far. They compliment each other well – Maguire attacks the ball while Lindelof sweeps – so securing the Swede’s future is a smart move
Pogba won’t be a ‘big loss’, says Scholes
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Report: Paul Scholes let loose on Pogba when speaking to talkSPORT, saying: “I think it’s quite clear he wants to leave the club. He wanted to move to Real Madrid [in the summer] and for whatever reason, it didn’t happen.
“If they ask him to stay for a year then we’ll see what happens. But I don’t think it will be a big loss to United [if he does go]. At the end of the day his form hasn’t been great anyway over the last three or four years he’s been there.
“I’m sure there’s more players there who can step in and do just as good a job.”
Verdict: Last season, Pogba was the club’s top scorer and creator in the Premier League and this time out the Frenchman has two assists in four games. So it’s fair to challenge Scholes here – if Solskjaer failed to replace the ex-Juventus man, United would be letting so much of their offensive output disappear from the squad.
Truthfully, comments from such legendary players like this do not help what is already a messy saga, after Pogba was strongly linked with Real Madrid during the summer. Scholes will only be pushing him closer to the exit door.
Greenwood, Lingard set for new contracts
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Report: According to the Evening Standard, academy graduates Greenwood and Lingard are set for new contracts at the club, while United are trying to secure a deal with Pogba as well. The Frenchman no doubt aggravated United fans in the summer after he said “he was thinking about a challenge somewhere else”. However, the report explains that with continuous interest from Real Madrid, the club want to avoid another long summer of uncertainty and tie him down quickly.
Verdict: Solskjaer has made it abundantly clear who he does and does not want at the club after the Norweigan let nine senior players depart in the summer. At the same time, Solskjaer has managed to get David De Gea and Lindelof to sign new deals recently, and by trying to get Greenwood, Lingard, and Pogba to do the same, it shows that the United manager is heavily invested in certain members of this current squad.
Greenwood has been in sensational form for the academy sides, scoring 34 times in 34 games for the U18’s, and scored in the Europa League in midweek. Lingard may not have assisted or scored so far this season, but the 26-year-old still offers great movement up top and his experience could be key for United in competitions like the Europa League.
Rangers face Livingston in the Scottish League Cup on Wednesday night as they look to make it into the semi-finals with a win.
The Gers have started this season well, winning five league games out of six and also kicking off their Europa League group campaign with a victory over Dutch side Feyenoord.
Good foundations, then, to what could be a productive season and Steven Gerrard will know that, in all honesty, this is the year where he needs to bring home a trophy.
The Scottish League Cup represents his first chance to do so and ahead of the game, the Gers have been put through their paces in training as they look for a victory on Wednesday night.
Indeed, the Glasgow club has provided this selection of photos from training on their Instagram feed with the players certainly looking ready to get going:
/B2zKCLSF-qq/
Who Steven Gerrard opts to play on Wednesday evening remains to be seen, but it looks as though the squad is pushing on in order to be up for selection.
It had to happen eventually, didn’t it? West Brom finally saw their unbeaten run ended as Leeds United replaced them at the top of the Championship table.
Whites left-back Ezgjan Alioski slammed home an effort which deflected in off Kyle Bartley for the game’s only goal as the Baggies’ run of nine straight games without defeat was halted.
West Brom dominated the match in large spells, particularly in the second half as they recorded 67.3% possession, which was hugely emphasised when substitute Tyler Roberts was replaced by Luke Ayling having played just half an hour.
But for all their pressure, Slaven Bilic’s men just couldn’t find a way past the stern Leeds defence.
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The Croatian opted for Hal Robson-Kanu in attack over Charlie Austin with their £4m summer signing failing to even feature at all in the game.
Instead, he called upon Kenneth Zohore after just an hour, and it appears his impact – or lack of – hasn’t gone down well with many of the Hawthorns faithful.
One supporter compared him to former striker Salomon Rondon, by claiming he is a ‘BTEC’ version, which basically means he’s worse.
The 25-year-old has started just four league matches this campaign and has managed to score twice, though, both were late penalties.
Another fan said Zohore was the worst player he’s seen upfront since Brown Ideye while a further member of the Baggies support labelled him as a ‘donkey’ following his substitute appearance.
In our Transfers that shook the club feature, Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at deals that many may not have seen coming and the impact that they had during their time by using statistical data and pundit remarks.
Certain transfers can have the ability to put a football club on the map and make the rest of the football world (or at least, domestically) take note of just what their aims and ambitions are moving forward. Chelsea certainly looked to do that in 2003.
Having been taken over by Russian billionaire and business oligarch Roman Abramovich in the summer of 2003 (BBC), the club looked to turn themselves into one of football’s powerhouses as quick as possible and splashed the cash as if it were going out of fashion in the imminent future.
Indeed, as per Transfermarkt, sheer volumes of cash were spent on signing the likes of Damien Duff, Juan Sebastian Veron, Joe Cole, Wayne Bridge, Scott Parker, Adrian Mutu and Claude Makelele (to name a few as we’d be here all day otherwise), however there was, perhaps, one addition that signalled Chelsea’s intent to take on some of the best in world football.
The Blues managed to land themselves, arguably, one of the best strikers in the game at the time in Hernan Jorge Crespo for a fee of just £16.8m (BBC) as Abramovich looked to send a message to those watching.
The Argentina international had been extremely prolific during his time at Parma (94 goals in 201 appearances) and SS Lazio (48 in 73 matches) prior to his move to England, which would have left to some confidence that the South American could fire them to glory.
Crespo did not start life too badly in SW6, as he managed to net 12 times in 31 appearances in his first season at Stamford Bridge (Transfermarkt), although the arrival of Jose Mourinho and Didier Drogba effectively curtailed his career in the capital.
After a spell back in Italy, the forward was given a chance to prove his worth under the Portuguese manager and helped the club retain the Premier League title with ten goals in his 30 top-flight appearances (Transfermarkt), but was subsequently moved on shortly after.
Crespo recently admitted he had unfinished business at the Blues and felt that he could have, perhaps, offered a little more if given the time. Speaking with FourFourTwo, he said: “I wanted to give something back as I felt I had their respect. I had fun with Chelsea. I would run all the way there if I had the chance to go back”.
Whilst there is, perhaps, a sentiment that the Argentine was considered a flop at Chelsea, it might be a little misguided as 90min.com suggests – as they point out that he managed to score 20 goals in 49 league appearances during his time at Stamford Bridge – although he does have a certain ‘cult hero’ status (per Planet Football).
One thing that cannot be debated, though, was that Crespo’s arrival paved the way for some of the club’s big-name signings after him and helped put Chelsea on the transfer map as a place that meant business when it came down to things all on the field.
Chelsea fans, do you think Crespo’s addition made clubs start to take notice of the Blues? Let us know your thoughts by sharing them in the comments section below!
Brendan Rodgers’ decision to leave Celtic earlier this year was quite a controversial one.
The former Liverpool manager achieved great success during his time in Scotland, and was even linked with a job at one of the top six Premier League clubs.
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Instead, the Northern Irish gaffer took up the post at Leicester City after the sacking of Claude Puel.
Celtic fans were fuming with Rodgers for making what they deemed to be a step down, but the Leicester boss has now explained his reasoning for swapping Celtic Park for the King Power Stadium.
Rodgers admitted that it was a tough choice to leave the Scottish champions as he’s supported them his whole life, but he thinks that Leicester are the right club due to their ambition, stability and squad quality.
He went on to say that he believes the Foxes can challenge for a spot in the top six, and that was the real draw that brought him to his decision.