The Hard Tackle puts forward the daily digest of all the news surrounding Manchester United Football Club.
Manchester United are set to turn their attention to Stoke City after an unconvincing 1-1 draw at Old Trafford against rivals Liverpool. Let’s take a look at some of the news doing the rounds.
Joe Riley joins Sheffield United on loan
Manchester United academy graduate Joe Riley has joined the Blades on loan for the rest of the 2016-17 campaign, as per Sky Sports. The player is highly-rated by the coaches at Old Trafford and this could serve as a great platform for the 20-year-old to gain some invaluable first-team minutes under his belt.
Riley has already broken through into the senior squad at Old Trafford, with two appearances for the Red Devils – one in the FA Cup and the other in the Europa League, both last season under Louis Van Gaal. He was recently struggling with his fitness with a hamstring problem.
Delighted to announce I have joined Sheffield united on loan until the end of the season?⚪️⚫️⚔️. @SUFC_tweets pic.twitter.com/aoi6D9tNUJ
— Joe Riley (@joeriley49) January 17, 2017
But the 20-year-old played 85 minutes in United U-23s’ 1-0 win against Liverpool and the player is now set to don the Blades shirt. Riley, who also does a decent job when deployed as a full-back, is likely to be used well by the League One leaders as they aim a return to the Championship.
Sean Goss on Queens Park Rangers’ radar
As per West London Sport, Sean Goss is attracting interest from Ian Holloway who wants the youngster over at his current employers, Queens Park Rangers. The 21-year-old, like Riley, is rated highly at Old Trafford and has even earned mentions from senior team manager Jose Mourinho.
Goss has been training with the first-team squad as per Jose Mourinho’s orders and was an unused substitute in the Premier League match against Watford under the Portuguese manager, a game United ended up losing.
The 21-year-old has recovered well from a back problem that kept him out for major portions of 2016 and has been impressing in his displays for the Under-23 side. The latest of his exploits was an excellently executed free-kick which led to an injury-time winner by Matty Willock against Liverpool Under-23.
Goss looks assured in the middle of the park and looks to have the quality to cut it at Old Trafford, something which cannot be said about many young midfielders. The player looks more of an old-school midfielder, like the generation of Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick.
#MUFC youngster @SeanGoss_ says he’s raring to go ahead of his Reserves return after a lengthy injury lay-off: https://t.co/gQ1Dbyqx1z pic.twitter.com/naS0qfSi7t
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 27, 2016
With Carrick nearing the end of his career, Manchester United could really do with a player cut from the same cloth. Hence, it would be a shame if Goss was to leave United on a permanent deal.
People see Goss as a future first-teamer at Old Trafford and we hope he stays at United long enough to live his dream of playing for the senior team of his boyhood club.
United Under-23s score ‘Fergie Time’ winner to down Liverpool
Manchester United Under-23s beat Liverpool by a scoreline of 1 goal to nil, with Matty Willock slotting in a ‘Fergie-time’ winner from a deftly executed Sean Goss free-kick, who was earlier denied from the penalty spot by Shamal George.
Joel Castro Pereira was the busier of the two keepers, however. But the Red Devils managed to hold on before snatching it in the 93rd minute, a feat that the senior team would be proud of, especially after the 1-1 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Sean Goss & Matty Willock, last minute at Anfield ? pic.twitter.com/hxNbXfYSaX
— United Reserves (@unitedreserves_) January 16, 2017
Matty Willock has taken to the forward role well, despite that not being his natural position and has been regularly delivering for the Red Devils’ Under-23 side. Axel Tuanzebe was his usual solid self at the back and you have to wonder it won’t be long before he makes it to the first-team setup.
United tracking Kieran Tierney
Celtic wonderkid Kieran Tierney is on the radar of Manchester United. The 19-year-old has been courted by the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City, and the Red Devils seem to have joined the list.
The player has recovered from a two-month injury layoff and clubs are likely to assess his displays after his recovery before moving to bring the Scottish international over to England. Mourinho has been deploying Matteo Darmian, who is predominantly a right-back, on the left side of the defence with question marks over Shaw’s ability to convince the Portuguese.
And it seems like Mourinho is already keeping an eye on the viable options available in the market in case Shaw fails to impress him by the end of the campaign. The player is valued at £10 million but with his deal set to run till 2021, Celtic has the power in any negotiations and are likely to demand more than his current valuation.
Red Devils eye Sheffield United forward David Parkhouse
Manchester United are looking to snap up highly-rated striker David Parkhouse. The 17-year-old forward hails from Northern Ireland and is regarded as one of the best talents to emerge for the Blades in the recent years.
The Red Devils have recently seen Joe Riley move to Bramall Lane till the end of the season and they would hope this would smoothen their negotiations for Parkhouse, if they do decide to move for the striker. The 17-year-old is yet to break through into the senior squad but could soon be set to make the grade for the Blades.
United have always been active in scouring for young exciting talents to add to their already impressive youth roster and Parkhouse may well be set to be the next. Also, Joe Riley may just act as United’s agent and convince the Northern Irish striker to move to Manchester.
