Premier League
NINE-MAN SOUTHAMPTON THRASHED 9-0 BY TITLE-CHASING MAN UNITED
Manchester United returned to winning ways in ruthlessly emphatic fashion with a Premier League record-equalling 9-0 home win over Southampton, who finished Tuesday’s (Feb 2) game with nine men.
The victory moves Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side level on 44 points with leaders Manchester City although United have played two more games, with City travelling to Burnley on Wednesday.
Substitute Anthony Martial scored twice for United after the break in a result that equals the club’s 1995 win over Ipswich Town and Southampton’s defeat by the same 9-0 scoreline at home to Leicester City in 2019.
“We’ve been waiting for them to show the magic and it was a night for them to go and enjoy it. We’ve not had many times where we could just enjoy the second half,” said Solskjaer. “You get lots of confidence from a performance like this, scoring goals is always good for a team.”
Saints, already weakened by injuries, had to play with 10 men from the second minute after midfielder Alexandre Jankewitz was sent off and they went down to nine men when defender Jan Bednarek was dismissed four minutes from time.
A bad night began after 79 seconds when Swiss Jankewitz made a dangerous high challenge on Scott McTominay, which left the United midfielder with stud marks on his thigh, and referee Mike Dean had no hesitation in showing the red card.
“When the game starts like it does it’s always if you can get the first goal as we have seen so many examples of 10 men closing up shop and getting a draw,” added Solskjaer, who was pleased to see his side play with such freedom.
VAR Reviews
Aaron Wan-Bissaka put United ahead in the 18th minute, sliding in at the back post to turn home Luke Shaw’s curling cross.
Marcus Rashford added the second in the 25th with a confident first-time finish after good work from Shaw and Mason Greenwood down the left.
A Bednarek own goal, from a low Rashford cross, made it 3-0 before Edinson Cavani headed home the fourth in the 39th minute.
Dean then awarded United a penalty when Kayne Ramsay brought down Cavani, who suffered an ankle injury and had to be substituted at half-time, but VAR ruled the foul had taken place just outside the box.
Yet the video official worked in United’s favour after the break when Che Adams looked to have pulled a goal back for the visitors but it was ruled out on review for the tightest of offside margins.
French forward Martial blasted in the fifth from a tight angle after 69 minutes and McTominay made it 6-0 with a sweet drive from the edge of the box in the 71st.
Polish defender Bednarek’s miserable night was completed when he was harshly sent off, conceding a penalty when he clipped Martial and then being shown the red card after another VAR review.
Bruno Fernandes converted the spot kick before Martial added his second in the final minute of normal time and Dan James made it nine in stoppage time.
Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuettl endured the second 9-0 loss of his time with the club but said his team would recover as they did after the hammering from Leicester.
“What can I say? It is horrible but we stood up after the first 9-0 and we have to do that again. I said at the time we do not need it again but when we have it again you have to take it,” he said.
-Reuters
Thomas Partey, who formerly played for English Premier League soccer club Arsenal, has been charged with rape and sexual assault, London’s Metropolitan Police said on Friday.
Partey, a Ghana international, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, with the charges relating to three women and the offences reported to have taken place between 2021 and 2022, the statement said.
Partey’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
He is due to appear at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Aug. 5.
Partey, 32, was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59 million) in October 2020 and became a key member of Arsenal’s first team.
He was first arrested in July 2022, though he was not named at the time and continued to play for Arsenal while investigations were ongoing.
-Reuters
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Five players including England forward Marcus Rashford and Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho have informed Manchester United that they wish to explore a future away from the Premier League side, a club source said on Friday.
Brazilian midfielder Antony, Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia and England international Jadon Sancho are also looking to leave the club, the source added.
Rashford, who has made more than 400 senior appearances for United, has fallen out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim, played for Aston Villa on loan while United had their worst-ever Premier League campaign, finishing 15th in the standings.
Amorim had called Rashford’s work rate into question, saying he would rather put a goalkeeper coach on the bench than a player not giving their all.
Rashford said he was feeling fitter and better since joining Villa, where he scored two goals in 10 league appearances.
United also failed to qualify for the Champions League as they lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Garnacho, who was a late substitute in the final, voiced his displeasure on social media after the loss.
“Up until the final, I played every round helping the team, and today I play 20 minutes, I don’t know,” he wrote in a post . “The final will influence (my decision), but the whole season, the situation of the club.”
Sancho was on loan at Chelsea, where he made 31 league appearances last season. Antony, who joined United from Ajax Amsterdam in 2022 for a reported initial transfer fee of more than $100 million, scored five goals in 17 LaLiga appearances on loan at Real Betis.
Malacia joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on loan in February.
-Reuters
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Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes turned down the opportunity to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal in order to keep playing “at the highest level”, he said on Tuesday.
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he had considered the move, which media reports said was worth four times his current salary, after being contacted by Al-Hilal’s president.
“There was that possibility, the president of Al-Hilal called me a month ago to ask me about it,” Fernandes, who is preparing to face Germany with Portugal, told reporters on Tuesday.
“It was a big offer, very ambitious. There was a waiting period for me to think about the future.”
Fernandes ultimately decided to stay at United and said he was motivated by his desire to continue playing at the top level and encouraged by his family and the club’s coach Ruben Amorim.
“I would be willing to do it if Manchester United thought so,” Fernandes added. “I spoke to the coach Ruben Amorim who really tried to talk me out of it. The club said they would not be willing to sell me, only if I wanted to leave.
“I spoke to my wife and family, and she asked me what my personal goals were in my career.
“It would have been easy to move there but I want to keep myself at the highest level, playing in the big competitions and I feel capable of it. I am happy with my decision.”
The 30-year-old Fernandes scored 19 goals and provided 19 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for United last season, winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the fourth time.
However, it was a season to forget for the team, as they finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league finish in half a century, and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.
-Reuters
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