MANCHESTER UNITED women have won at Old Trafford for the first time after beating West Ham 2-0.
Meanwhile Juventus are reportedly keen on a swap deal for Paul Pogba to return to Turin.
Stay up to date with our blog, below, for all the latest from Old Trafford…
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REMINDER
A reminder of one of the big stories of the last couple of days.
Manchester United have reportedly made a £68.5million enquiry for Atletico Madrid winger Marcos Llorente.
What do we make of that?
Llorente is a highly-rated talent in SpainCredit: AFP KIT CONTROVERSY
Manchester United’s home kit for next season has reportedly been leaked online.
The plain adidas design has no pattern but opinion was split among fans – particularly over the version which included their new sponsor TeamViewer.
The leaked Man Utd kit caused a lot of talk on social media Opinion was split among the way the TeamViewer sponsorship looks Images claiming to depict the Red Devil’s home kit next season were uploaded by footyheadlines.
And it seems like adidas have copied Nike’s style from this season by placing the club logo and their own badge in the centre of the shirt.
England’s home kit and Tottenham’s yellow installment this season are both styled in the same fashion.
The Three Lions’ strip in particular is already being hailed as a modern cult classic.
QUESTION TIME
Quesiton for Man Utd fans – who would you rather sign between Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe?
Haaland looks far more likely, but if you could have either, which one would you go for?
Mbappe and Haaland are two of the hottest prospects in world footballCredit: Getty
JOSH AND BECKS
Anthony Joshua paid a visit to Manchester United legend and former England captain David Beckham as he continued to enjoy himself in Miami.
Goldenballs appeared to be giving the boxing star a tour around his new pride and joy – his Inter Miami football team.
Beckham, 45, posed for a snap with Joshua on the pitch of the Inter Miami CF Stadium in Fort Lauderdale and wasted no time in sharing it on Instagram.
He captioned it with: “So happy to have the champ in town… WELCOME TO MIAMI.”
Joshua and Beckham posed for a photo in MiamiCredit: Instagram @davidbeckham RECAP
Quick re-cap of today’s big stories relating to Man Utd:
- Man Utd make approach for Atletico Madrid winger Marcos Llorente for £68.5million
- Barcelona join race for Borussia Dortmund striker and Man Utd target Erling Haaland
- Midfielder Jesse Lingard could be set to return to Man Utd at the end of the season despite successful loan spell with West Ham
KEANE ON JUDE
Manchester United legend Roy Keane has labelled Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham ‘the complete midfielder’ after his performance for England against San Marino on Thursday.
The former Red Devil said: “Bellingham looks like a complete midfielder.
“He’s still a kid playing regularly in Germany.
“He’ll be disappointed with missing the chance, but at 17 he has nice composure, happy to break forward, very good night’s work.
“He will be disappointed with the chance, he tries to complicate it when he should just side-foot it.”
Bellingham was superb for England earlier this weekCredit: Getty SLATING G-NEV
Former Valencia keeper Santiago Canizares has slammed Gary Neville for the way he spent his time in charge of the club.
Neville lasted just four months with the Spanish side and was sacked having won just three of his 16 La Liga games.
Neville had a horrid time as Valencia boss back in 2015Credit: Getty And Canizares has now proceeded to blast the Man Utd legend for the way he went about his role as head coach.
He told The Mirror: “That man treated the opportunity to coach Valencia as a joke. He is not worthy of my opinion, nor any of my respect.”
RIGHT FER ME
Sir Alex Ferguson has said some of his signings as Manchester United manager ‘weren’t the best’ as he reflects on his 27 years at the club.
During his 27 years at Old Trafford the Scot signed football geniuses like Cristiano Ronaldo and Eric Cantona.
Ferguson signed Ronaldo way back in 2003Credit: Getty But it goes without saying there were others he was less proud of.
He said: “Some players I had were absolute natural footballers, with natural talent.
“But there were other players who shared my determination, who maybe weren’t the best players but they made themselves the best players, because they had something inside them too.”
CAVANI SET TO LEAVE?
Uruguay’s assistant coach Mario Rebollo has urged Edinson Cavani to leave Manchester United at the end of the season.
Cavani’s father recently revealed that his son ‘does not feel comfortable’ at Old Trafford as his one-year deal looks to come to an end.
Cavani has scored seven goals in 22 games for Man Utd this seasonCredit: Getty The club has the option to extend that deal until 2022, but Rebollo feels the striker should depart at the end of the current campaign.
“It helps the national team if Cavani goes to Boca or wherever,” Rebollo told 2 De Punta.
“The priority is that he plays where he is comfortable and with a good competitive level. If he’s close to here it’d be great, but if he’s not comfortable he would not bear it much.”
ERL OF THE LAND
Erling Haaland’s price tag has been set as £154million by Borussia Dortmund.
Manchester United have been linked with the Norwegian for some time, even before he signed for the German club.
Haaland has scored 39 goals for club and country already this seasonCredit: Getty But they will have to pay nearly double their record transfer fee if they want to secure the 20-year-old sensation.
Would Man Utd fans want to shell out that kind of money for him?
PROB-ROM WITH SERGIO
Sergio Romero’s wife Eliana Guercio does not want to leave Europe, according to reports.
The Manchester United outcast has been heavily linked with a move to Argentine giants Boca Juniors but his wife – who slammed the Red Devils just five months ago – may put a stop to the switch.
Romero is trying to leave Old Trafford due to his lack of game timeCredit: PA During the transfer saga, Guercio, 43, blasted United for showing a lack of respect to the loyal stopper.
She posted on Instagram: “Sergio Romero worked hard for his club. Last trophy they won, they lifted it with him.
“He helped the team reach four finals/semi-finals and then he was on the bench, only to lose them all. It is time for them to return the opportunity and let him go.
“RESPECT FOR ONCE!!!! [sic].”
NOT KEANE
Manchester United legend Roy Keane has been linked with a sensational return to Celtic as manager but will hope it goes more smoothly than his single season as a player there.
Keane, 49, is currently the favourite to succeed Neil Lennon.
And while he enjoyed his time at Celtic and playing for the “brilliant fans”, he admits in retrospect that he remains EMBARRASSED by this time there.
He told an audience of fans in the Waterfront Hall in Belfast two years ago: “I really enjoyed Celtic even though I done f*** all up there.
“I signed for Celtic in December and physically I hadn’t kicked a ball in two or three months, I’d left United with a broken foot.
Keane spent the final season of his playing career at CelticCredit: Getty “I go straight into a game up there, I tear my hamstring twice. I never justified my role at the club — if anything I’m embarrassed by my time at Celtic.
“What I really enjoyed at Celtic was, it was nice just to be in a different dressing room.
“I had great craic with the United lads but the Celtic boys — Neil Lennon, Petrov, Varga — I really enjoyed the dressing room at Celtic.
“Celtic fans must be looking at me going, ‘you were rubbish’, but it was nice to get a taste of Celtic, brilliant fans.
“But obviously I’m a professional footballer and then the struggle came and I saw the specialist about my hip and I had a year left on my contract.
“I had to go into Celtic every day with my injuries and I was embarrassed. I was ashamed to be going in picking up wages.”
MENTAL TOUGHNESS
Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed he called for a ‘mental toughness’ in his players while forging his career as a manager.
Ferguson is arguably the greatest British manager of all-timeCredit: PA Speaking to United’s official website, he said: “I go back to one of my first defeats as a manager, at 32 years of age. I didn’t expect it. I went into the game eyes wide open, that this was going to be easy.
“We lost 5-2 to Albion Rovers. I was the manager of East Stirling, the players were on £5 a week, or something like that.
“I came home and I said ‘if I don’t get Alec Ferguson in my team, I’m not going to succeed’. So I made sure that my players had a mental toughness about them, from that moment on.”
HOLD-LING ON
A reminder of our exclusive from last night…
Manchester United are open to a sensational return for Jesse Lingard this summer – including talks over a contract extension.
Lingard has been re-called to the England squad since joining West Ham on loanCredit: Getty The England midfielder has been in stunning form over the past few months since joining West Ham on loan until the end of the season.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been hugely impressed with his performances, and is a long-time fan of the 28-year-old despite freezing him out.
And United will assess whether to bring him back into the Old Trafford fold before the summer, while not ruling out giving him a new deal.
He has a little more than a year left on his £100,000-a-week terms, and the club could be willing to offer him a new three-year contract.
CEK YOURSELF
West Ham have issued a hands off warning to Manchester United for Tomas Soucek.
The Red Devils are said to be interested in acquiring his services after a super first full season with the Hammers.
Soucek netted a hat-trick for Czech Republic earlier this weekCredit: Getty Soucek joined West Ham on a permanent deal for £19million but has already been linked with a move away.
However, West Ham’s first team coach Stuart Pearce has shut down transfer rumours.
“No, he’s happy here and he’s not going anywhere, that’s for sure,” Pearce told talkSPORT of Soucek.
“He’s been brilliant here, I’ve got to say. Dave [Moyes] brought him into the club in January of last season and since then he’s just been brilliant.
“He’s got a wonderful attitude to work, on his days off he comes in to work, he’s just really an absolute pleasure to work with.
“As a man he is top quality. He and [Vladimir] Coufal, the two Czech boys, they’ve both been brilliant.
“And Tomas can be a handful, too. England will face Czech Republic in the [Euro 2020] group stages and his ability in both boxes is very, very good.”
CLOS-ARR
Manchester United were very close to signing Watford striker Ismaila Sarr last summer before talks broke down over a £40million fee.
Watford’s former technical director Filippo Giraldi told the Here We Go podcast: “We were extremely close, I was personally negotiating with them.
Sarr has scored 15 goals in 64 appearances for WatfordCredit: Getty “We weren’t able to reach an agreement. And I think Ismaila is very young, he will arrive for sure.
“He missed probably an opportunity, but I think also for his football to stay here and get 10 goals and 10 assists, he’s deciding the league. I think for Watford in the condition they are at the moment it’s luck he stayed.
“I love Ismaila because he has the ability to affect the game every time he plays, and that’s quite rare.
“You see fast wingers becoming more and more important in physical leagues like the Premier League. I remember last year against Manchester United and Liverpool, he was the one with Gerard Deulofeu on the other side affecting the game and deciding the game every time.
“This type of player are players you have to try to maximise and protect them as much as you can.”
MAKING THEIR MARC
Manchester United have reportedly made an approach for Atletico Madrid midfielder Marcos Llorente.
The Red Devils are set to make a £68.5million offer for the Spaniard and doubled his wages in the process.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer recognises his side are too heavily reliant on Bruno Fernandes going forward and so wants to address that issue in the summer window.
Llorente has netted ten times in 35 appearances for Atletico this season, the first time he has hit double figures in a single campaign.
Llorente featured for Spain against Greece earlier this weekCredit: AFP OLE’S AT THE WHEEL
Manchester United are preparing to hand Ole Gunnar Solskjaer a new contract, even if they end the season without a trophy.
The Red Devils are hoping they can cap a strong campaign with the Europa League crown.
But if they fail to triumph in Europe, The Telegraph have reported that Solskjaer will still be honoured with a new deal.
Man Utd finished fourth in the Premier League under the Norwegian last season and have progressed under his management, currently sitting second in the table.
Solskjaer is set to remain at United for the foreseeable futureCredit: Getty DREAM COME TRUE
Katie Zelem says leading Man United Women’s team out at Old Trafford will go down as one of the most thrilling experiences of her career.
Zelem told SunSport: “I think it’s, it’s quite hard to say, in a structured way what this means for me.
Zelem cannot wait to lead her team out at Old Trafford “I’ve visited the Theatre of Dreams since I was young and been to numerous games that we’ve won and we’ve lost with good experiences and bad ones.
“When I watched the men’s team walk out onto the pitch when I was young, I used to think ‘my god that must be amazing. And now it’s me doing it.
“I think it is something I definitely couldn’t have imagined, but it’s definitely high up on my list of achievements.
“I’m sure it is with a lot of the other girls in the team.”
DEAL FOR DALOT
AC Milan are reportedly interested in making Diogo Dalot’s loan move a permanent one.
The Manchester United wide player has featured 24 times for the Serie A giants so far this season, scoring two goals.
And according to Corriere dello Sport, the Italian side are now looking at acquiring his services long-term.
However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is thought to want Dalot to return at the end of the campaign, so prising him away from Old Trafford could cost a substantial amount of money.
Dalot could be on the move this summerCredit: Getty KA-PAU
Manchester United have left Real Madrid fuming over their pursuit of Villarreal defender Pau Torres, according to reports.
The Red Devils are targeting a new centre-back this summer, to play alongside skipper Harry Maguire.
Torres (left) has turned Man Utd heads with his performances this seasonCredit: EPA Emerging at the top of their wishlist is £52million-rated Torres, who has impressed for boyhood club Villarreal.
And the delighted 24-year-old is ‘determined’ to move to the Premier League.
But the developments have angered Madrid chiefs, ‘who can’t believe’ that United have ‘stolen’ their target away.
According to El Desmarque, club president Florentino Perez is ‘very angry’ at the situation.
They claim that the 74-year-old has ‘earmarked’ Torres as a potential replacement for Sergio Ramos this summer.
ON GARD
Manchester United are open to a return for Jesse Lingard this summer with talks over a contract extension possible.
Lingard was rewarded for his excellent form on loan at West Ham by starting in England’s win over San Marino.
Jesse Lingard made his international return for EnglandCredit: Getty Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been very impressed with Lingard’s contribution for the Hammers.
And United will decide whether to bring him back into the Old Trafford fold before the summer, while not ruling out giving him a new deal.
He has a little more than a year left on his £100,000-a-week terms, and the club could be willing to offer him a new three-year contract.
RASH BACK
Marcus Rashford has returned to Manchester United after failing to recover from his foot injury.
Rashford did not feature in England’s 5-0 victory over San Marino at Wembley.
Marcus Rashford has returned to Manchester UnitedCredit: Reuters The FA have announced Rashford will head back to United to continue his rehabilitation.
United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be sweating on his forward’s fitness for a crunch run of fixtures in April.
They face Granada in the Europa League quarter-finals while they look to secure second place in the Premier League.
United are next in action when they welcome Brighton to Old Trafford on April 4.
BAILL OUT
Manchester United have put contract talks with Eric Bailly on hold.
The Sun revealed the defender has grown frustrated at falling behind Victor Lindelof in the pecking order at Old Trafford.
Eric Bailly’s future at Old Trafford is uncertainCredit: EPA A United insider said: “Eric has had enough now.
“He simply doesn’t feel wanted or respected by the manager.
“Eric doesn’t believe he gets any answers or explanation about the way he is treated and feels he is the easy option to leave out.”
Bailly’s contract expires in 2022 and the defender could be set to leave United this summer.
NOT EVEN TOP FOUR
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is set to earn a major pay rise with a contract worth £10million a year.
But the Red Devils boss is still lagging behind the top managerial earners in the Premier League.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is lagging behind several managers in the salary stakesCredit: Getty Solskjaer will only rank fifth highest earner once he signs his contract.
Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola is top dog in the money rankings earning a whopping £20m-a-year.
Jurgen Klopp is next on the list taking home £15m after last season’s Premier League triumph.
Jose Mourinho also earns £15m at Spurs while Carlo Ancelotti’s salary at Everton is also higher than Solskjaer’s at £11.5m.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
