We present to you the one-stop shop for the daily digest of various news involving the iconic English club Manchester United.
Manchester United managed to snatch a late draw at Stoke, a match they feel they should have won, in all fairness. The Red Devils, though, are unlikely to let the result keep lingering on their mind with one eye on the mid-week EFL Cup semi-final second leg.
Record-breaker Rooney reveals next target
The whole squad is likely to be pumped as they aim to edge closer to their first cup final under the management of Jose Mourinho. And one particular player has set qualification to the EFL Cup final as his next target, a player who has recently created history.
Yes, Wayne Rooney, Manchester United’s captain and now the leading goalscorer in the club’s history, has set a final berth as his target. EFL Cup is special in a way for the former Evertonian. For, it was the EFL Cup, or League Cup as it was formerly called, that was Rooney’s first trophy with Manchester United.
The 31-year-old was asked by MUTV if he had something more left to achieve after acquiring an array of accolades through his career, Rooney was prompt with his response.
Rooney said, “I think the next thing is the League Cup, we want to win it. The final’s in February and we’ve got a game on Thursday night to try and get there. Every trophy is great to win in football and it’s obviously the next one we can win so that’s the focus, certainly on Thursday.”
Sean Goss set to join Queens Park Rangers
One player that is most likely to miss the EFL Cup action is academy graduate Sean Goss. The 21-year-old came through the academy and was likened to Michael Carrick for similar playing style and vision.
The midfielder has been training with the first-team but it seems his Manchester United dream, seeing as he is a boyhood fan, will end, as the Red Devils have agreed a £500,000 fee for the permanent transfer of the player to Queens Park Rangers, as per Sky Sports.
The player’s progress was derailed by a nasty long-term injury and it looks like he is set to make the drop to Championship in search of regular first-team football. There is no update as to whether there is a buy-back option in it, which would make sense, given the initial hype around Goss.
After that Sean Goss transfer I decided to fast forward into 2022… pic.twitter.com/Yz1roxMuky
— JM ⚡️ (@ForzaMartial) January 23, 2017
We hope Goss establishes himself well under Ian Holloway. Who knows, this might just turn out to be another Pogba-esque situation for United. If that indeed becomes the case, United fans would hope at least this time there is a buy-back clause in place.
Anthony Martial miffed at Mourinho after Stoke omission
Moving on to the first team, last season’s hero Anthony Martial is upset after being omitted from the starting eleven by Jose Mourinho for the Stoke trip, a match that ended 1-1.
After a poor start to the season for Martial, which resulted in the Frenchman being handed a diminished role, he seemed to have turned a new leaf after continuously impressive performances, which saw him being selected more frequently.
But Mourinho was reportedly unhappy at his performance in the 1-1 home draw to Liverpool, especially with an inexperienced match-up with rookie Trent Alexander-Arnold and the Portuguese boss substituted the Frenchman in the second-half.
There have been reports of a tiff between Martial’s camp and Mourinho, which seems to have now regained traction, as per Daily Mail’s report, after Mourinho chose to ‘drop’ Martial from the lineup to face Stoke City, especially with no possible reason given for the exclusion.
PSG beat Manchester United to next ‘Cristiano Ronaldo’
United have already limited on the options for the wings after the sale of Memphis Depay. And their options at wide positions are set to stay limited with United losing the transfer battle for SL Benfica starlet Goncalo Guedes, hailed as the next Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Red Devils have reportedly been gazumped by Paris Saint-Germain with Patrick Kluivert convincing Guedes to reject United interest in favour of a switch to the French capital. A fee around the £21 million mark is reported to have been agreed between SL Benfica and Paris Saint-Germain.
With United not being able to sign the starlet, Mourinho will need to look towards Anthony Martial for squad rotation, at the very least, amidst the fixture congestion, with the Red Devils competing on four fronts at the present moment.
Chelsea aim to hijack Manchester United move for Victor Lindelof
Another potential United deal that could be set for a hijack is their on-off transfer of Victor Lindelof, Guedes’ teammate at SL Benfica. The Swedish international was once reported to be very close to signing for the Red Devils, with Mourinho pulling the plug on the deal, as per the sources.
United are still in for Lindelof but now face competition from their English rivals Chelsea, along with Inter Milan. Conte is looking to strengthen and freshen his options at the back and is eyeing a summer swoop for the 22-year-old.
A potential hijack being on the cards during the summer, Mourinho could sanction a move for Lindelof in January itself or else, the Portuguese runs the risk of losing yet another transfer target due to lack of urgency in dealings.
