Premier League
Eight players leave Man Utd as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s summer overhaul gets underway
Red Devils duo Juan Mata and Lee Grant are both out of contract this summer and were set to leave, but have now opened talks with Manchester United over new deals
Sergio Romero is one of eight players to be released by Manchester United.
Juan Mata and Lee Grant are both out of contract this summer and were set to leave, but have opened talks with United over new deals and will remain at Old Trafford for at least one more season.
Joel Pereira is another casualty with the 24-year-old goalkeeper being released after returning from his loan spell at Huddersfield.
The shot-stopper made only two appearances in the Championship last season and is now a free agent.
Manchester United have also released six academy players: Jacob Carney, Mark Helm, Iestyn Hughes, Arnau Puigmal, Max Taylor and Aliou Traore.
Mata, 33, started only 10 games in all competitions for United last season.
Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer explained the Spaniard’s future is in his own hands after he scored for Man United on the final day of the Premier League season, in a win over Wolves.
Solskjaer said there would be an option for Mata to stay unless he wanted to leave in search of more first-team opportunities, and it appears the former Chelsea winger is keen to prolong his time at Old Trafford.
The decision to offer Grant, 38, a new contract is a little more surprising given he is third in the pecking order of goalkeepers at United, behind David de Gea and Dean Henderson.
Not only this but Manchester United have been linked with Tom Heaton in recent weeks and are expected to sign the 35-year-old shot-stopper from Aston Villa.
Young goalkeeper Paul Woolston has also been offered a new deal to remain at Old Trafford.
Manchester United co-chairman Joel Glazer met with Red Devils fans this week in a bid to build bridges following the club’s doomed European Super League venture.
The American promised future investment, and not just on the pitch, but behind the scenes too.
“Old Trafford is at the heart of Manchester United and while we have spent over £100m over the last 10 years on infrastructure projects, we will now accelerate the process of planning much more significant investment and upgrades to the stadium,” he said.”Rest assured, we will consult with supporters throughout the process to end up with a result we can all be proud of. The same goes for our training ground.”
He added: “The commercial growth at the club has helped deliver the revenue which ultimately underpins that investment in a sustainable manner. That approach has allowed us to have among the highest net transfer spend in world football over the last five years and have one of the highest wage bills.”
-Mirror
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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