Premier League
Ten Hag sweating on Rashford fitness before Newcastle clash
Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford has returned to training after picking up a knock before the international break but a late call will be taken on his return to action this weekend, manager Erik Ten Hag said on Friday.
Rashford missed England’s European Championship qualifying wins over Italy and Ukraine after withdrawing from the squad earlier this month due to a knock he suffered during United’s FA Cup quarter-final win over Fulham.
The 25-year-old is United’s top scorer this season and has been in scintillating form with 30 goals for club and country.
“I have good hope, he trained but he had to do some treatment, he had to do some individual training. Today he joined in with the group,” Ten Hag told reporters ahead of Sunday’s trip to Newcastle United.
“We have one more day, so I have a good hope he will be available… I have seen him back this week and he has shown a lot of energy, a lot of motivation. It was a good spirit and a lot of focus.”
Rashford’s rise this season has seen him linked with a move to top European sides but Ten Hag said he wants to keep the club’s talisman with talks ongoing over a contract extension. Rsahford’s current deal ends next season.
“It’s an internal process. We focus on winning games, of course also planning for the future, so in the back we’re working on that,” Ten Hag added.
“It’s about agents, it’s about football director John Murtough. Rashy and I are focusing on performing.”
Ten Hag also said injured French forward Anthony Martial could make his return for the first time in two months.
United are third in the league standings with 50 points but fifth-placed Newcastle can overhaul Ten Hag’s side on goal difference if they win at St James’ Park.
Newcastle have the best defensive record in the Premier League this season having conceded only 19 goals in 26 games but the Dutch boss was more concerned about their time-wasting tactics.
“We know they delay, it’s something that the refereeing doesn’t want. They want to have tempo in the game, that is the aim of the Premier League, so they have to be consistent to let the game go,” Ten Hag said.
“They’ve had a great season with their manager (Eddie Howe)… It’s a team that is really hard to beat. We are looking forward to the challenge and the evidence is we can beat them.”
-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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