..::Football IV::..

[Wolverine GTR]

Solskjaer tips Rashford to join Kane in a group of 'top, top' strikers


Marcus Rashford has the potential to be a “top, top” striker, says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, with it only a matter of time before the Manchester United star joins the likes of Harry Kane at that level.

An Old Trafford academy graduate has never made any secret of the fact that he sees himself as a central frontman.Others have not always viewed him as the right fit for such a role, with a succession of Red Devils and England managers having sought to make the most of his pace and direct running on the flanks.

Solskjaer has, however, moved the 21-year-old inside since succeeding Jose Mourinho and been rewarded for that show faith with a collection of impressive performances.

Rashford, who has been keeping £75 million ($96m) team-mate Romelu Lukaku out of the side, now has six goals and as many assists for 2018-19 and is being backed to take his game to even greater heights.

Interim United boss Solskjaer said of the youngster’s ability to be a leading man: “He’s got frightening pace, he’s now become stronger, he can hold the ball up for us and he’s a great link player.

”He can become a top, top one. We can talk about Harry Kane and his class, and I'm sure Marcus has got the potential to get up there. He's been brought up here.“There were a couple of sessions [while in Dubai] with the young kids, [Tahith] Chong, Angel [Gomes] and Jesse [Lingard], where they play together in a certain way. A very exciting player to work with.”

Rashford’s return to form under a coach prepared to back him appears to have brought an end to any questions regarding his future, having previously seen transfer talk sparked.

Solskjaer, though, is yet to determine whether he will be staying on at United past the end of the season, with the Norwegian – who has seen those at Molde claim that they are expecting him back – not giving too much thought to his options.He said when quizzed on a possible extended stay in the Red Devils hot-seat: “We haven't had that conversation.

“You don't plan five or six months or whatever it was and then suddenly after two weeks change that.“No, nothing has changed. We just keep on working every single day on improving the team here. I work with a fantastic coaching staff, I have to say, to put a plan together on how we want to look over the next few months.”

United’s next test, and the biggest of a spell under Solskjaer which has delivered five successive victories so far, is set to take them to fellow Premier League top-four hopefuls Tottenham on Sunday.

 

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Barcelona and Sevilla agree €1m Munir transfer


Barcelona and Sevilla have reached an agreement for the transfer of forward Munir El Haddadi to the Andalusian club pending a medical and contract.Goal previously reported the 23-year-old Munir, who was in the last six months of his deal with the La Liga champions, was intent on joining Sevilla this summer when his deal expired after rejecting contract offers from Barcelona.

However, the Andalusian club were hopeful of sealing a deal for Munir in January and Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde also voiced his desire to see the situation resolved by the close of the window.

"It seems Munir has taken a decision and, evidently, the club have also made a decision," Valverde said in a news conference on Wednesday.

"We want a solution as soon as possible. If that can be this month, even better."
The two La Liga sides have now done just that, coming to an agreement for Munir to join immediately, with Barcelona announcing they have received a €1,050,000 fee.

"The club would like to thank Munir El Haddadi for his dedication and commitment and wishes him all the best for the future," Barcelona said in a statement. Munir had spent the last two seasons on loan at first Valencia in 2016-17 and then Deportivo Alaves in 2017-18 after making his Barcelona debut as an 18-year-old during the 2014-15 campaign.

The forward featured 16 times in the league in his career for Barcelona, scoring four times, before heading out to Valencia where he played in 33 La Liga contests, scoring six times.A loan to Alaves followed the next season and saw Munir improve on his strike-rate, finding the net 10 times in 33 La Liga matches, starting 28 of them.

Entering the last year of his contract, there was no loan for Munir to begin the 2018-19 season, and he played just seven times for Barcelona, scoring once in the league.

However, Munir had not played for the club since a start in the Champions League against Tottenham, with Barcelona having already locked up the top spot in their group.A Spain youth international, Munir has been capped once for the senior side, coming on for a 13-minute appearance against Macedonia in 2014.

In addition, Goal understands that Munir's acquisition will make a move for Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata less likely.Sevilla had met with Morata's representatives over a potential deal but found the proposed loan move too expensive.

While Morata was in the fame, Goal understands Munir was always the club's preferred option.In addition to Munir, Sevilla also announced Friday an agreement had been reached for Ajax centre-back Maximilian Wöber.

Like Munir, the agreement for the 20-year-old defender is pending a medical and agreement over a contract.

 

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Fabregas completes move to Monaco

Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas has completed his move to Monaco.
Fabregas will move to Monaco without a fee for now, as Chelsea will be paid via bonuses depending on the Fabregas’s performances.

The 31-year-old has signed a three-and-a-half-year-deal with the principality club, with it hoped he will play a key role in helping the 2017 Ligue 1 champions avoid relegation.

He will reunite with former Arsenal team-mate and close friend Thierry Henry at Stade Louis II, with the Gunners' all-time top goalscorer taking his first steps in management after Leonardo Jardim was sacked in October."It is a great pleasure to join AS Monaco, a new project for me," Fabregas said in a statement.

"The group is quality with young players and a young coach. I'm here to help the team."I'm looking forward to starting, we have a great match to play in Marseille on Sunday. I am very excited."

Fabregas' departure from Chelsea sees him end four-and-a-half years at Stamford Bridge after he joined the Blues from Barcelona in 2014, with the Spain international helping the west London outfit win two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup."There is no doubt Fabregas’s place in the Chelsea history books is assured given his achievements over the past four-and-a-half seasons," a club statement read.

"Big goals and outstanding moments of quality, all backed up by the ultimate aim, which is to be part of a successful, trophy-winning team."Fabregas departs having helped the club achieve great success, as well as providing our supporters with some wonderful memories."

In total he scored 22 goals and laid on 57 assists during his 198 appearances for Chelsea, the last of which came on Saturday when he bid an emotional farewell to the club's fans in the final stages of his side's 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup.

Cup matches have offered Fabregas the main chance to impress under Maurizio Sarri, with Jorginho's arrival in the summer forcing Fabregas down the pecking order in terms of midfield places.

Fabregas' departure will now hasten Sarri's need to find a replacement, with the Blues working on deals to sign Cagliari's Nicolo Barella and Zenit St. Petersburg's Leandro Paredes, though there has been no final decision in terms of what kind of player will be brought in to replace the ex-Arsenal man.What his departure does do is free up a large chunk of Chelsea's wage bill, with Fabregas the third-highest paid player at the club behind N'Golo Kante and Eden Hazard despite only having six months left on his contract.

AC Milan had previously shown an interest in signing him, but they were priced out of a deal due to upcoming Financial Fair Play sanctions."We are very pleased to welcome Cesc Fabregas, a world-class player and a great professional, whose arrival demonstrates the ambition of the club," said Vadim Vasilyev, the club's vice president and general manager.

"This is obviously a very good reinforcement for the team and we are convinced that his experience at the highest level will bring a lot to our players on and off the field."Fabregas could be joined at Monaco by a familiar face, with the Ligue 1 outfit in advanced talks to sign Chelsea forward Michy Batshuayi.

Henry is keen to bolster his squad with his side sitting 19th in the table and five points from guaranteed safety, though they did book themselves a place in the Coupe de la Ligue semi-finals on Tuesday.

 

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Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2019.01.12

Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2019.01.12

West Ham Vs Arsenal

Brighton Vs Liverpool

Burnley Vs Fulham

Cardiff City Vs Huddersfield

Crystal Palace Vs Watford

Leicester City Vs Southampton

Chelsea Vs Newcastle

​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

LA Liga Fixtures 2019.01.12

LA Liga Fixtures 2019.01.12

Leganes Vs Huesca

Valencia Vs Real Valladoid

Girona Vs Alaves

Villareal Vs Getafe
​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Coppa Italia Fixtures 2019.01.12

Coppa Italia Fixtures 2019.01.12

Lazio Vs Novara

Sampdoria Vs AC Milan

Bologna Vs Juventus
​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

West Ham 1 Arsenal 0: Nasri impresses as Arnautovic waved off

Samir Nasri impressed for West Ham as they claimed a 1-0 Premier League victory over his former club Arsenal at London Stadium on Saturday.

Nasri was making his Premier League debut for the club as he continues his comeback from an 18-month ban for receiving an intravenous treatment at a Los Angeles clinic in December 2016, contravening World Anti-Doping Agency rules.
And the former France international was a key figure for West Ham, setting up Declan Rice for the winner early in the second half.


Marko Arnautovic - linked with a move to China - waved to fans after being replaced in the second half, while Arsenal struggled to truly test goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski in a poor showing.

Mark Noble failed to get enough purchase on a left-footed strike from the edge of the box as West Ham threatened to take an early lead but it was Arsenal who forced the first real save of the match – Fabianski providing the block after Alexandre Lacazette had exposed a hole in the Hammers' defence.

Sead Kolasinac chose to cut the ball back for Lacazette when a shot would have been the better option after the ball broke for him down the left after 23 minutes, while Nasri probably should have followed the Bosnian's example when he drilled into the side-netting soon after.

Nasri then teed up Felipe Anderson to fizz a low strike wide, before Matteo Guendouzi arrowed a strike just past the post from distance with Fabianski at full stretch and Declan Rice headed just off target in the closing stages of an even first half.

West Ham made the breakthrough three minutes into the second half, when a weak clearing header from Laurent Koscielny fell to former Arsenal colleague Nasri, who laid off the ball for Rice fire home from just inside the box - the 19-year-old's first goal for the club.

Arsenal improved following the introduction of Aaron Ramsey - who is said to have agreed a deal with Juventus this week - after 59 minutes but failed to make their chances count, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alex Iwobi missing two opportunities of note.

The Gunners had the ball in the back of the net in stoppage time,,, but Koscielny's header was ruled out for offside against Lucas Torreira, who crossed the ball, as West Ham held on for a first home win against the Gunners since 2006.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Chelsea 2 Newcastle United 1: Willian wins it for Blues

Willian scored a brilliant winner as Chelsea battled to a 2-1 Premier League victory over Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Pedro opened the scoring with the help of a classy assist from David Luiz, but the hosts were pegged back by a Ciaran Clark header shortly before half-time.The points were Chelsea's, however, thanks to Willian's curling strike 12 minutes into the second half.

Newcastle offered little going forward after falling behind for a second time, as fourth-placed Chelsea pulled six points clear of Arsenal.Chelsea took just nine minutes to go in front, with Pedro getting on the end of a wonderful Luiz ball from his own half to delicately chip over the onrushing Martin Dubravka.

Luiz almost added his own name to the scoresheet in the 25th minute, when his close-range header deflected over the crossbar, before Florian Lejeune registered Newcastle's first shot of any description – a tame volley from outside the box that was comfortably collected by Kepa Arrizabalaga.

Salomon Rondon should have done better when he blazed wide following a neat exchange with Christian Atsu after half an hour, and Ayoze Perez stabbed a strike just off target as Newcastle threatened an equaliser.

The visitors had their leveller five minutes from half-time, when Ciaran Clark powered home a header from a Matt Ritchie corner.Willian dragged wide with a chance at an instant reply and Dubravka produced a superb save to deny Pedro less than two minutes into the second half.

The Spanish winger then scuffed a shot from the centre of the box in the 56th minute but Willian had Chelsea back in front soon after.Given the space and time to plot his next move on the left of the penalty area, Willian cut inside and curled a beautiful strike beyond Dubravka.

Newcastle had appeals for a penalty turned down after Perez went down softly under the challenge of Antonio Rudiger and, after Willian had a chip saved by Dubravka, Rondon headed wide from a rare opportunity to restore parity four minutes from time.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Sampdoria 0 AC Milan 2 (after extra time): Super-sub Cutrone spares Rossoneri

Patrick Cutrone came off the bench to score twice as a below-par AC Milan battled through to the Coppa Italia quarter-finals with a 2-0 extra-time victory at Sampdoria.

After a forgettable 90 minutes at the Luigi Ferraris, Cutrone side-footed home from Andrea Conti's teasing centre and followed that up with another fine finish to earn a scarcely deserved win for the Rossoneri in the additional time.

Sampdoria will feel they created the better of the chances against a Milan side that lacked creativity and ideas until Cutrone's introduction, but Pepe Reina made crucial saves from Riccardo Saponara and Albin Ekdal when it mattered.


The win is unlikely to do much to ease the seeming ever-present rumours that Gennaro Gattuso's position as head coach is under threat, although they can at least look forward to a last-eight tie with either Napoli or Sassuolo.

Milan had a let off in the 23rd minute when Jakub Jankto's dipping right-wing cross was spilled by Reina and Gianluca Caprari's claims of a push by Cristian Zapata in his attempts to reach the ball fell on deaf ears.

Gonzalo Higuain wastefully drilled wide of the left post after getting in behind the defence and the lacklustre nature of the match continued until Hakan Calhanoglu wasted a glorious 70th-minute chance from Samu Castillejo's right-wing delivery, somehow squaring across goal instead of turning the ball home at the back post.

Higuain then rightfully had a goal ruled out for offside, and Fabio Quagliarella fired wastefully into the side-netting for Sampdoria before ex-Milan man Riccardo Saponara placed an effort wide of the bottom-left post.Reina came to the fore in extra-time, first brilliantly closing the angle to deny Saponara before a brilliant double save denied Ekdal and Dawid Kownacki.

Those interventions proved crucial when Conti, whose time at Milan has been injury plagued, put one on a plate for Cutrone to guide past Rafael, and the Italy international lofted another expert finish over the goalkeeper from Calhanoglu's pinpoint pass to seal the win.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Amiens 0 Paris Saint-Germain 3: Neymar-less leaders back to winning ways

Paris Saint-Germain returned to winning ways in the absence of Neymar as Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe inspired a 3-0 Ligue 1 win at 10-man Amiens on Saturday.

The champions and runaway leads were sensationally knocked out of the Coupe de la Ligue by Guingamp in midweek and were not at their best again in northern France.

With Neymar, again the subject of transfer speculation with reports he is "begging" for a return to Barcelona, left out of the squad after Thomas Tuchel described him as "very tired", PSG found it difficult to break down the league's fourth-bottom side until the 57th minute.


Cavani broke the deadlock from the penalty spot after Alexis Blin was penalised for handball and, following a red card for Amiens' centre-back Khaled Adenon, the Uruguay international teed up Mbappe before Marquinhos added a third as PSG stretched their lead at the top back to 13 points.

A well-worked eighth-minute corner from PSG saw Julian Draxler denied by the right leg of Regis Gurtner, who enjoyed a largely comfortable first half despite PSG having over 75 per cent possession.

Mbappe could only produce a tame poked finish from Marco Verratti's throughball, though more testing was Angel Di Maria's fierce effort that Gurtner tipped over as Mbappe tried to claim what would have been a controversial penalty after going down off the ball in the build-up.

For all PSG's clear superiority, they would have trailed at half-time if not for a superb diving save from Alphonse Areola to thwart Eddy Gnahore at the end of an Amiens counter-attack.

All Amiens' good work in the first half was undone 11 minutes into the second as Alexis Blin handled as he dove in to block a Di Maria effort and Cavani coolly sent Gurtner the wrong way from 12 yards.

Their task was made even harder when Adenon received a second bookable offence and his marching orders for a poor challenge on Mbappe, who was soon celebrating as he tucked away a confident close-range finish from Cavani's fine right-wing cross.

Substitute Moussa Diaby saw an effort cleared off the line before Marquinhos made the scoreline more flattering by lifting into the net 11 minutes from time.

 

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Brighton and Hove Albion 0 Liverpool 1: Salah holds nerve to get Reds back on track

Mohamed Salah won and converted a decisive 50th-minute penalty as Liverpool returned to winning ways with a hard-fought 1-0 victory at Brighton and Hove Albion.

Title rivals Manchester City trimmed the gap at the summit to four points when they beat the Reds' 2-1 last week and a much-changed XI were then knocked out of the FA Cup by Wolves.

But Jurgen Klopp's men restored a seven-point advantage thanks to the excellent Salah, having bided their time in the face of an often-impeccable defensive display from Brighton.


City host Wolves on Monday, by which time Tottenham will have had the chance to conquer Manchester United and close to within six of Liverpool.Fabinho was deployed as an emergency centre-back for the visitors and his raking pass allowed Andrew Robertson to deliver a teasing cross from the left, with Roberto Firmino unable to slide home.

Room for Liverpool's attacking players to operate between a compact Brighton defence and midfield was sparing, but Sadio Mane engineered some in the 27th minute for Trent Alexander-Arnold to whip into the box and Xherdan Shaqiri to glance just wide.Jordan Henderson found space for Liverpool's next headed attempt as Lewis Dunk made the block.

Salah escaped the shackles to force a save from David Button early in the second half and a jinking dribble from the Egypt star moments later drew a clumsy foul from Pascal Gross.Button guessed correctly but was beaten for power.

Fabinho's first significant piece of defensive work came before the hour when he blocked from Gross, while Alisson took no chances in pushing Jurgen Locadia's speculative attempt around the post.

Georginio Wijnaldum lashed just wide 10 minutes from time and Salah uncharacteristically missed from close range when set up by substitute James Milner, but his earlier intervention proved to be enough.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Bologna 0 Juventus 2: Bernardeschi and Kean put Juve into the Coppa quarter-finals

Defending champions Juventus sailed into the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia thanks to a straightforward 2-0 win at Bologna on Saturday, Federico Bernardeschi and Moise Kean getting the goals.

Massimiliano Allegri rested several first-team regulars, such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala, but still Juve were a class above and in complete control throughout, sealing victory without truly exerting themselves.

A goalkeeping howler allowed Bernardeschi to give the visitors the upper hand with just nine minutes on the clock and it looked a long way back from there even so early on for Bologna.


Kean, 18, wrapped things up soon after the break thanks to a poacher's finish, his first goal of the season, and Juve eased into the last eight in pursuit of a fifth consecutive Coppa title.

Relegation-threatened Bologna gifted the Serie A leaders an early breakthrough – goalkeeper Angelo Da Costa colliding with Arturo Calabresi and dropping the ball for Bernardeschi on the edge of the box, with the winger subsequently converting.Leonardo Bonucci was the next to go close, meeting Bernardeschi's corner with a header in the 29th minute, but on this occasion Da Costa managed to hold on to the ball.

Juve increased their advantage just after the interval as Kean reacted quickest after Douglas Costa's shot had been blocked, the young forward coolly prodding into the bottom-right corner from eight yards.

Kean was then withdrawn for Ronaldo just past the hour, though the Portugal star was unable to make the score even more comfortable, with Bologna limiting the damage in the latter stages.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Gattuso leaves door open for Higuain move to Chelsea


It is up to Gonzalo Higuain to choose his Milan future amid reported interest from Chelsea, according to manager Gennaro Gattuso.

The Argentina international joined Milan on loan from Juventus over the summer and has scored eight goals in all competitions this season.Though Milan have the option to buy at the end of the season, Higuain has reportedly been the subject of interest from Chelsea, who are managed by his old boss at Napoli, Maurizio Sarri.

Any deal between Chelsea and Higuain would be made more complicated by fact he is on loan, but that does not make it an impossibility.Gattuso has previously voiced his desire for the 31-year-old Higuain to remain with the club, but admitted it may well fall on the striker to make the final call on his decision.

Speaking after Milan’s 2-0 Coppa Italia victory over Sampdoria in which Higuain went 111 minutes but didn’t score, Gattuso praised the striker yet conceded his uncertainty over what the future holds.“[Higuain] was active today,” Gattuso told Milan TV. “He didn't score but he did everything right.“We have a very honest relationship, we say things to people’s faces. There is great honesty.

"When a player makes certain choices, it becomes difficult to convince him otherwise. One can try.“At this moment, he is a Milan player and we’re holding on tight."I don’t know what will happen. We are honest with each other and I want him to maintain this attitude, which has never been lacking thus far.”

The Milan boss also claimed that he would do what he could to try and hold onto the striker during his post-match press conference.“I haven’t figured out what Higuain is unhappy with, because I see him look content and involved in the locker room atmosphere.'We’ll see what happens. If it was up to me, I’d keep him at my house and feed him my dinner.”

Milan’s victory was their second straight after a five-game winless run across all competitions.Patrick Cutrone scored both goals in extra time as they got past the hosts, leaving Gattuso pleased at the result.“The players did very well today,” Gattuso said. “We knew Sampdoria were a great team so we knew it wasn't going to be easy.

“[Cutrone] did great for sure. Cutrone and Conti gave us a lot of quality. I liked our defensive game today, we played hard.”New Milan signing Lucas Paqueta also made his debut, making the start and going 85 minutes, in a performance that left Gattuso anxious to see more.

“I liked [Paqueta’s] game, especially in the second half,” Gattuso added. “He moves very well on the pitch, he is your typical Brazilian! I am happy for him.”

 

[Wolverine GTR]

'We don't kick a ball' - Spurs v United not about me or Pochettino, claims Solskjaer


Ole Gunnar Solskjaer does not believe Sunday's Premier League showdown between Manchester United and Mauricio Pochettino's Tottenham is an audition for the Old Trafford job.Pochettino is regarded as the number one candidate for the United role at the end of the season, while caretaker manager Solskjaer is also in the mix.

Solskjaer has led United to five successive wins since replacing Jose Mourinho last month – the Norwegian favourite bringing entertaining football back to the Theatre of Dreams.

However, Solskjaer – on loan from Molde – is set for his toughest test in charge of the side and insisted the blockbuster clash is not about him or counterpart Pochettino."No. It's not about me at all," Solskjaer told reporters when asked if the match was an audition for the permanent job.

"It should always be about the players, because it's not about me. It's not about him. "We don't kick a ball at all. They kick a ball. Of course, we might make a decision here or there, but it's down to the players to perform and I'm sure my boys are ready."

Manchester United are sixth in the Premier League, 10 points adrift of third-placed Tottenham, after 21 matches, with Solskjaer having already admitted that his side had to have victory to stand any chance of catching Spurs in the league table.

A goal from Harry Kane and two from Lucas Moura saw Tottenham take a 3-0 over the Old Trafford outfit in their first league meeting this season while Jose Mourinho was still in charge.But United have looked a very different side under Solskjaer, rolling up 16 goals over his five matches at the helm while surrendering just three.

A win on Sunday would move the club back to within six points of the top four, fourth placed Chelsea having taken a 2-1 win over Newcastle on Saturday and would pull them level on points with Arsenal who sit fifth.Following Sunday’s match United will not be back in action until Premier League match next Saturday against Brighton.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2019.01.13

Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2019.01.13

Everton Vs Bournemouth

Tottenham Vs Manchester United

​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Big match ekakOle ge real test eka dan thamai patan ganne

Pahugiya matches wala Manchester United performance godak hodaia widiyatama play kaloth hoda result ekak ganna puluwan adath

Good Luck Manchester United!
​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Coppa Italia Fixtures 2019.01.13

Coppa Italia Fixtures 2019.01.13

Torino Vs Fiorentina

Inter Vs Benevento

Napoli Vs Sassuolo
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[Wolverine GTR]

LA Liga Fixtures 2019.01.13

LA Liga Fixtures 2019.01.13

Atletico Madrid Vs Levante

Athletic Bilbao Vs Sevilla

Barcelona Vs Eibar

Real Betis Vs Real Madrid
​

 

[ThisaraMalintha]

Big match ekakOle ge real test eka dan thamai patan ganne

Pahugiya matches wala Manchester United performance godak hodaia widiyatama play kaloth hoda result ekak ganna puluwan adath

Good Luck Manchester United!
​

Good Luck UTD

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Tottenham Vs Manchester United

Tottenham Starting Line-up

Lloris
Trippier
Alderweireld
Vertonghen
Davies
Sissoko
Winks
Eriksen
Alli
Son
Kane

&

Manchester United Starting Line-up

De Gea
Young
Jones
Lindelof
Shaw
Matic
Herrera
Lingard
Pogba
Martial
Rashford
​