List of All Articles with Tag 'f'

David Raya's agent reveals Chelsea and Manchester United made enquiries about the goalkeeper before he joined Arsenal, while Tottenham and Bayern Munich made concrete offers.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe could finalise a deal to become a minority shareholder at Manchester United during the upcoming international break. Ratcliffe’s Ineos Group is expected to pay in the region of £1.25billion for a 25 per set stake in the Old Trafford club, while also acquiring significant control over footballing operations. There is no a firm timetable for the deal to be finalised, but the PA news agency understands it could come as early as next week, with Ineos optimistic it will be done before the Premier League campaign resumes on November 25 after the international break. Reports that the deal could come as soon as Monday have, however, been dismissed as that is the date of Sir Bobby Charlton’s funeral. It is almost a year since the Glazer family announced, on November 22, 2022, that they were considering “strategic alternatives” to help the club grow, which included consideration of a sale. Qatari Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and Ratcliffe emerged from a large field of interested parties, and made offers in the region of £5bn for a complete takeover, but that fell short of the Glazer family’s valuation. Sheikh Jassim then withdrew from the process last month, while Ratcliffe continued to pursue a minority shareholding which could later be increased. The 71-year-old, who tried to buy Chelsea last year, grew up in the Manchester region and describes himself as a lifelong fan of United. The deal is expected to lead to a major shake up of United’s football operations. Sir Dave Brailsford, the former performance director of British Cycling, is expected to take on significant influence in his role as Ineos’s director of sport. The group already owns French Ligue 1 club Nice and Swiss club Lausanne, as well as the Ineos Grenadiers cycling team and Ineos Britannia – the sailing team led by Sir Ben Ainslie. They also have a stake in Formula One team Mercedes, whose team principal Toto Wolff last week said he would also consider investing in United once Ratcliffe’s deal is completed. Ongoing speculation and uncertainty over the club’s ownership has come at a time when United are struggling on the pitch. Wednesday’s stunning 4-3 defeat to Copenhagen has left Erik ten Hag’s side bottom of their Champions League group, while they are eighth in the Premier League, having lost nine of 17 games in all competitions.

Gareth Southgate tells the media that Marcus Rashford's midweek red card was unfortunate but also the correct decision. England's manager also commented on the upturn in fortunes for Harry Maguire.

Friday's roundup of transfer rumours includes news on Man Utd's stance on Raphael Varane heading to the Saudi Pro League, Arsenal's continued interest in Douglas Luiz, Erling Haaland, Alphonso Davies, Florian Wirtz, Ibrahima Konate and more.

James Maddison has withdrawn from the England squad due to injury, less than 24 hours after Gareth Southgate selected him for two upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers. The 26-year-old Tottenham Hotspur midfielder was taken off during the first half of Spurs’ 4-1 Premier League defeat to Chelsea on Monday with an ankle injury, and his club have now confirmed he is unavailable for England’s last two qualifiers, at home to Malta on 17 November and away to North Macedonia on 20 November. Southgate had sounded confident that Maddison would be available despite some “doubt”, suggesting that he was withdrawn from the Chelsea game as a precaution while Spurs struggled with only 10 players following the sending off of defender Cristian Romero. “He seems positive,” Southgate had told reporters on Thursday afternoon. “There’s clearly an element of doubt. But I think at the time of the decision [substitution against Chelsea], they had just gone to 10 [players], maybe the manager was thinking, ‘I’ve got a player who might have a knock and we’ve only got 10 players anyway’.” Maddison’s withdrawal points to the challenge for Southgate of getting accurate injury updates from clubs, something he had bemoaned immediately after naming his squad, when he suggested Newcastle’s Callum Wilson was the player most at risk of missing out through injury. “You would be amazed at how complicated it is picking a squad because all clubs are sensitive to information. I couldn’t be certain that everyone in that squad will be there on Sunday night and Callum Wilson is the biggest doubt, but equally I am pretty confident the others can get through.” Spurs said in a statement that Maddison would continue his rehabilitation at their Hotspur Way training centre under the supervision of club medical staff. England sealed qualification for next summer’s Euros in Germany in their last qualifier, a 3-1 win over Italy at Wembley last month. Read More Gareth Southgate ponders defensive options ahead of naming latest England squad Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg: Spurs went down with flag held high but loss hurts a lot Son Heung-min hails Guglielmo Vicario for ‘unbelievable saves’ in win at Palace

Tottenham midfielder James Maddison has been withdrawn from the England squad due to injury. The 26-year-old was taken off during the first half of Spurs’ 4-1 Premier League defeat to Chelsea on Monday with an ankle injury, and his club have now confirmed he is unavailable for England’s Euro 2024 qualifiers at home to Malta on November 17 and away to North Macedonia on November 20. Spurs said in a statement that the player would continue his rehabilitation at their Hotspur Way training centre under the supervision of club medical staff. Maddison had been included in the initial 25-man squad named by England manager Gareth Southgate on Thursday. England sealed qualification for next summer’s Euros in Germany in their last qualifier, a 2-1 win over Italy at Wembley last month. Read More Football rumours: Tottenham identify Lloyd Kelly as January transfer target On this day in 2014: David Moyes appointed Real Sociedad head coach Chicago Bears edge out Carolina Panthers in three-point win

What the papers say Tottenham will look to fill the hole left by Micky van de Ven – who was injured in their 4-1 loss to Chelsea on Monday – identifying Bournemouth’s Lloyd Kelly as a possible replacement, according to the Standard. Kelly, 25, was a transfer target in the summer and his contract expires at the end of the season. Arsenal could look for midfield cover in January with Thomas Partey set to be out for the rest of 2023, the Daily Mail says. Social media round-up Players to watch Raphael Varane: The Saudi Pro League are after the 30-year-old Manchester United man but the club want to keep him, Football Insider reports. Florian Wirtz: Liverpool and Chelsea are interested in the 20-year-old Bayer Leverkusen midfielder but they will have to wait until the summer transfer window, TEAMtalk reports. Read More On this day in 2014: David Moyes appointed Real Sociedad head coach Chicago Bears edge out Carolina Panthers in three-point win Unai Emery acknowledges good fortune opened the door for Villa’s victory

David Moyes was named as the new head coach of LaLiga side Real Sociedad, on this day in 2014. Moyes, who was axed by Manchester United the previous April following a dismal first season in charge at Old Trafford, was handed a contract until June 2016 with the Spanish outfit. Moyes left United just 10 months into a six-year deal after being named as the successor to Sir Alex Ferguson in the summer of 2013. At the time of his departure, United – the defending champions – were seventh in the Premier League and 23 points behind leaders Liverpool. The 20-time title winners had broken a host of unwanted records during his tenure, including failing to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in almost two decades. Moyes, who served the third-shortest managerial stint in the club’s history, won 27, drew nine and lost 15 of his 51 games in charge. The former Everton boss took over a Sociedad side who had moved out of the relegation zone a day earlier with a 2-1 home win over champions Atletico Madrid. Following a goalless draw at Deportivo in his first match in charge, Moyes secured his maiden win with a 3-0 victory over Elche, courtesy of a hat-trick from Carlos Vela. Sociedad also beat Barcelona 1-0 in January and finished 12th in the table, but Moyes was sacked on November 9, 2015 following a poor start to the following season. Moyes was appointed Sunderland manager in July 2016 following the departure of Sam Allardyce, but the Black Cats were relegated from the Premier League and Moyes resigned a day after the season ended. Read More Chicago Bears edge out Carolina Panthers in three-point win Unai Emery acknowledges good fortune opened the door for Villa’s victory ‘Great result’ cheers David Moyes as West Ham have another good European night

The Panthers made a massive trade to draft Bryce Young. It's looking like an awful deal.

The Chicago Bears were double winners on Thursday Night Football by pushing the Carolina Panthers to the top of the updated NFL Draft order.

Detroit Tigers free agent ace Eduardo Rodriguez reportedly cares not about geography, which could shake up the free agency landscape.

VIDEO: Matt Eberflus' unforgettable halftime interview.