..::Football IV::..

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Paris Saint-Germain 9 Guingamp 0: Verratti injured for rampant champions

Paris Saint-Germain tied their record Ligue 1 winning margin with a 9-0 victory over Guingamp at the Parc des Princes, but Marco Verratti hobbled off with an apparently serious injury.

Despite losing to a late Guingamp penalty in a remarkable Coupe de la Ligue meeting last week, the result never looked in doubt for PSG in an altogether different affair on Saturday as Neymar scored a double while both Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani hit the simplest of hat-tricks.

Yet an already depleted midfield, featuring Dani Alves out of position, was further limited by Verratti's first-half withdrawal after taking a kick, nursing his left foot as he headed off the pitch.


With a crunch Champions League clash with a reinvigorated Manchester United to come in less than a month, Thomas Tuchel's delight at the form of Neymar and Co will undoubtedly be offset by real concerns in the middle of the pitch.
PSG led from their first real opening as Neymar provided a moment of inspiration, running onto Dani Alves' lofted pass and selling a dummy to a backtracking defender before slamming high past Marc-Aurele Caillard.But Thomas Tuchel's men did not have it all their own way and Verratti soon departed following a clash with Felix Eboa Eboa, although Neymar could continue after himself suffering a knock.

Neymar was central to PSG's best work and created their second with a surge into the area, teeing up Mbappe to find the bottom-right corner. The Frenchman then netted again before the break as a blocked Eboa Eboa clearance left him with a simple finish.An initially more ponderous second half soon gave way to further home goals as Cavani converted from Juan Bernat's cross before rising to nod in Angel di Maria's dinked centre.

Neymar joined his strike partners on a brace as he wriggled through and slid a finish under the goalkeeper, with Guingamp ultimately doing well to keep the deficit to single figures as Cavani bundled in his hat-trick goal - awarded only after a VAR referral had overruled a non-existent foul - and Mbappe turned in number eight.

Thomas Meunier added his name to the scoresheet with an 83rd-minute drive that earned this side a slice of PSG history as they equalled a record set when they sealed the title against Troyes in 2016.

 

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Liverpool 4 Crystal Palace 3: Salah reaches 50 thanks to Speroni shocker

Mohamed Salah's brace moved Liverpool seven points clear of Manchester City in the Premier League title race as Julian Speroni's error saw Crystal Palace go down 4-3 at Anfield.

Palace led thanks to Andros Townsend's first-half goal, but quickfire strikes from Salah and Roberto Firmino turned the game around eight minutes into the second half.

James Tomkins headed Palace level but an awful error by veteran goalkeeper Speroni, tipping James Milner's cross towards his own goal for Salah to score his 50th goal in the Premier League, gave Liverpool a lead that was later added to by Sadio Mane.


Palace netted a stoppage-time consolation through Max Meyer but Liverpool - who had Milner sent off for a second bookable offence late in the second half - held on to stretch their cushion at the top, with Manchester City away to managerless Huddersfield Town on Sunday.
Fabinho fired an early effort over Speroni's crossbar, the 39-year-old goalkeeper becoming the oldest player to feature in the Premier League this season.Joel Matip then headed a Milner corner narrowly wide as Liverpool pushed for the opener, but it was Palace who took the lead in the 34th minute.

Townsend, who moments earlier survived a penalty appeal for handball, slammed in a first-time finish after Wilfried Zaha beat makeshift right-back Milner far too easily to send in a fizzing low cross.

But Liverpool were level within a minute of the restart, Salah pouncing from close range with a deft close-range finish after Virgil van Dijk's speculative drive deflected high into the air.

Within seven minutes Liverpool were in front after another stroke of fortune, Naby Keita setting up Firmino for a shot that took a deflection to beat the helpless Speroni.

Palace drew level in the 65th minute, however, as Tomkins took advantage of slack marking to head home Luka Milivojevic's corner at the back post, but Liverpool hit back again 10 minutes later.Speroni's misjudgment of a Milner cross saw the ball again loop invitingly for Salah to finish from virtually on the line.

Jeffrey Schlupp missed a great chance to score an equaliser for Palace and Liverpool were reduced to 10 men after Milner was dismissed for a second yellow card having tripped Zaha.But Liverpool's threat on the counter was maintained and they made sure of the points in the third minute of added time when Mane cut in from the left wing to beat Speroni.

There was still time for yet another goal, though, as substitute Meyer beat Alisson from inside the box.

 

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Arsenal 2 Chelsea 0: Lacazette and Koscielny fire Gunners to rousing derby win

Arsenal returned to winning ways and reignited their bid for a top-four place in the Premier League with an excellent 2-0 triumph over Chelsea.Alexandre Lacazette crafted a wonderful 14th-minute opener as Maurizio Sarri's side, not for the first time this season, wilted under the pressure of a London derby.

Club captain Laurent Koscielny's attempt to head Sokratis Papastathopoulos's volleyed pass six minutes before half-time spun off his shoulder and beat Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.


It was the former France defender's first goal since rupturing an Achilles tendon last season and Chelsea were unable to respond.Sokratis powered wide unmarked from an eighth-minute corner before centre-back partner Koscielny forced a point-blank save from Kepa, who was grasping at air when Lacazette turned sharply and clipped past him at his near post.

Sead Kolasinac played Pedro haphazardly onside to almost loft an 18th-minute equaliser for Chelsea, although the left-back made himself more useful in attack with a delicate cross that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang nearly converted with a wonderful overhead kick.

Koscielny's fortuitous conversion off his shoulder was not so picturesque but it was nevertheless rapturously received at Emirates Stadium.Slack set-piece marking at the other end saw Marcos Alonso head against the post, pursuing a lifeline Chelsea scarcely deserved.

Chelsea enjoyed sustained possession in the Arsenal half early in the second period but created little, with Koscielny in particular defending impeccably.Aaron Ramsey tried to prod the goal his endeavours deserved in the 64th minute after Kolasinac raided into the Chelsea box.

Blues substitute Ross Barkley had a rasping strike blocked before Arsenal made an enforced change due to Hector Bellerin collapsing with a seemingly serious knee injury - a rare blot on an outing far removed from last weekend's loss at West Ham.

 

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'Rashford has the world at his feet' - Young sees Man Utd forward becoming best on the planet


Marcus Rashford “has the world ahead of him” and is capable of becoming “one of the best”, says Manchester United team-mate Ashley Young.The England international has always been considered to be a player of some potential.Having burst onto the scene under Louis van Gaal, he was tipped to reach the very top.

Frustrating spells have, however, been spent on the flanks and the bench by a man who has never made any secret of his desire to operate as a central striker.Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has granted him a regular run in that role and has been rewarded with a series of impressive performances.

That latest came against Brighton on Saturday, with the 21-year-old netting what proved to be the match-winner in a 2-1 victory a week after he did likewise in a crunch clash with Tottenham.

He now has a personal best Premier League goal return of eight, with the confidence flowing through him clear for all to see as he delivered a clinical finish against the Seagulls.“Marcus Rashford is an unbelievable talent," Young explained to BBC Sport after the final whistle.

“I have said it since he was in the youth team. He has the world ahead of him and can be one of the best in the world. I think he was off balance and still found the net.”

Rashford’s effort shortly before half-time on Saturday doubled United’s advantage on the day after Paul Pogba had opened the scoring from the penalty spot.Pascal Gross pulled one back for Brighton, but the Red Devils dug deep at Old Trafford to get themselves over the line.Seven successive victories have now been secured under interim boss Solskjaer, with a record-breaking six of those coming in Premier League competition.

“I think for 70 minutes we were terrific,” added Young.“The chances we created, we just wanted that third goal. At times you have to dig deep and come through games like this and we showed that.

“It was backs to the wall when they scored but we still created chances and we are delighted with that win.“We are delighted to get seven wins under Ole. When you are full of confidence you think you are going to win every game.”

With Arsenal having seen off London rivals Chelsea 2-0 later in the day, United’s latest success has lifted them to within three points of the Premier League’s top four and a standing required to secure a return to Champions League action for 2019-20.

 

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Inter 0 Sassuolo 0: Spalletti's side labour at sparse San Siro

Inter rode their luck on the way to an underwhelming 0-0 home draw against Sassuolo in their first Serie A outing of 2019.

Roberto De Zerbi's men created the best of the opportunities and will count themselves unfortunate not to have snapped what is now a five-match winless streak in all competitions.San Siro was closed to all but 11,000 local children as Inter began a two-match stadium closure following the alleged racial abuse of Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly last month, although there was no lack of intensity in an entertaining contest.

Matteo Politano and Kevin Prince-Boateng both went close to a winner either side of half-time but, unable to find a way past a team that conceded nine times in their final two league fixtures of last year, the Nerazzurri can have few complaints over a result that leaves them four points behind second-placed Napoli, who host Lazio on Sunday.

Inter had lost seven of their last eight Serie A meetings with Sassuolo and found themselves on the back foot during the opening 25 minutes.Manuel Locatelli burst through midfield and fired one shot wide while Boateng and Domenico Berardi both tested Samir Handanovic.

The impressive Politano helped turn the tide by posing problems at the other end and, from Ivan Perisic's cross, forced Andrea Consigli into a sharp close-range save on the half-hour mark.

The end-to-end action continued after the interval as Boateng rose unchallenged to meet Locatelli's left-sided cross, but his header was straight at Handanovic.Inter's grip on a point looked tenuous until the end and they were indebted to veteran goalkeeper Handanovic and centre-back Milan Skriniar for blocking close-range efforts from Jeremie Boga and Mehdi Bourabia amid a scramble in the box late in proceedings.

 

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'You never know' - PSG's Mbappe not ruling out future Madrid move


Kylian Mbappe did not rule out a future move to Real Madrid in the future, though the Paris Saint-Germain sensation insisted he is "very happy" at the Ligue 1 champions.

Madrid have been long-term admirers of Mbappe and the 20-year-old star continues to be linked with the Champions League holders and La Liga giants. Mbappe, who helped France win the 2018 World Cup, has become a world superstar in recent season, with he and PSG ripping Ligue 1 apart.

Saturday’s 9-0 destruction of Guingamp left the club 13 points clear at the top of the table with two games in hand on their nearest challengers.Mbappe scored a hat-trick in that contest, adding to a hat-trick from Edinson Cavani and a brace from Neymar, with Thomas Meunier supplying the other tally.

Following the win the youngster was asked about his future and the possibility of joining the Spanish giants. "I'm fine here, but in football - and the future, you never know," Mbappe said via AS.

Mbappe, who has scored a Ligue 1-high 17 goals and 21 in all competitions this season was also quick to add that he was happy in France, where he is surrounded by talent.

Team-mate Cavani is second in the league scoring charts, with Neymar sat fourth.
"I'm very happy with how things are going for me at Paris Saint-Germain,” he said.
"I'm under contract until 2021 and so now's not the moment to think about anything else."

PSG are back on the pitch Wednesday in French Cup action against Strasbourg before returning to league action next Sunday against Rennes to close out the month of January.

The club will face a difficult February, with Lyon and Bordeaux on tap in league play and the first leg of a round of 16 tie against Manchester United set for the second week of the month.

 

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'Maybe they shouldn't be playing at this level' – Sarri eviscerates 'mentally weak' Chelsea players


Maurizio Sarri has slammed his Chelsea players following their 2-0 defeat to Arsenal, stating that that his players are 'very difficult to motivate'.

Chelsea's backline started frantically at the Emirates, conceding possession on numerous occasions before they were made to pay by Alexandre Lacazette's fine finish from a tight angle.A little bit of luck went the Gunners' way for their second, a lofted cross going in off Laurent Koscielny's shoulder as he attempted to head home.

Regardless, Chelsea looked blunt and predictable throughout, and their manager opted to speak in his native Italian so that his point would be as clear as possible.“I have to say that I'm extremely angry because this defeat was down to mentality,” Sarri told the press.

“They were far more determined than we were and I can't accept that. It was similar to Spurs – I spoke to the players and I thought it was solved.“I want to talk about tactics but it would appear this group of players are very difficult to motivate.

“I think when you see this type of game where one team is more determined then you can't talk about tactics. Their level of determination was much better than ours throughout the game.Pushed further on why he can't get through to his squad, he said: “That's a difficult question to answer.

“It seems that they're not aggressive enough mentally – that's down to their personalities and that's difficult to change.“You have to influence them and that could be down to a new player coming in or one of the old heads taking control.

“I don't think a player at this level can be afraid to face up to their responsibilities. The best thing that can happen is that the players and I speak very openly.“I am the person responsible for the players and it's important for them to have the right attitude. Ig they can't achieve that then maybe they shouldn't be playing at this level.”

Despite Saturday's loss, Chelsea remain three points ahead of Arsenal in fourth place and must now prepare for an FA Cup clash with Tottenham on Thursday.

 

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Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2019.01.20

Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2019.01.20

Huddersfield Vs Manchester City

Fulham Vs Tottenham

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LA Liga Fixtures 2019.01.20

LA Liga Fixtures 2019.01.20

Real Betis Vs Girona

Villareal Vs Athletic Bilbao

Levante Vs Real Valladoid

Rayo Vallecano Vs Real Sociedad

Barcelona Vs Leganes
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Serie A Fixtures 2019.01.20

Serie A Fixtures 2019.01.20

Frosinone Vs Atalanta

Fiorentina Vs Sampdoria

Spal Vs Bologna

Cagliari Vs Empli

Napoli Vs Lazio
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Bundesliga Fixtures 2019.01.20

Bundesliga Fixtures 2019.01.20

Nurnburg Vs Hertha Berlin

Schalke Vs Wolfsburg
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Juventus 3 Chievo 0: Allegri's men cruise despite Ronaldo penalty save

Douglas Costa, Emre Can and Daniele Rugani all scored their first goals of the season as Juventus eased to a 3-0 Serie A win over struggling Chievo on Monday, despite Cristiano Ronaldo having a penalty saved.

Massimiliano Allegri's men were comfortable throughout in Turin and kept their healthy nine-point lead at the Serie A summit following Napoli's win over Lazio, though things would have been even more comprehensive had Ronaldo been accurate from the spot.

Although the visitors started positively, Juve still managed to take an early lead in style through Costa, before Can made it 2-0 late in the half – the Germany international scoring for the first time since joining from Liverpool.


Ronaldo wasted the chance to extend the advantage in the 52nd minute, though there was never any risk of a fightback, as the plummeting Flying Donkeys suffered their 11th defeat of the season to remain nine points adrift of safety, with Rugani wrapping things up late on.

Chievo kept Juve at bay for just 13 minutes, as Costa took things into his own hands with a darting run in towards the centre, before drilling a left-footed drive into the bottom-right corner from 30 yards.

Juve stepped things up another notch after a bit of a lull – Stefano Sorrentino making an unorthodox save with his right foot to divert Federico Bernardeschi's deflected 20-yard strike off target.He was helpless to deny Can just before the break, however, as the German opened his Juve account with a calm finish from just inside the area after an incisive run and pass from Paulo Dybala.

Juve should have extended their lead early in the second half, but Sorrentino produced a fine save to keep Ronaldo's penalty out after a Costa strike had been handled by Mattia Bani.

Sorrentino was eventually beaten for a third time in the 84th minute, however, as Rugani met Bernardeschi's left-wing free-kick delivery to head in.

 

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Hazard: I frustrate all my managers - but I won't change


Chelsea star Eden Hazard has admitted that his less than energetic defending can sometimes irk managers, but he has no plans to alter his playing style now.

Hazard has been in sparkling form so far in 2018-19, racking up 10 Premier League goals and 10 assists to aid Chelsea's bid to return to the Champions League next season.At times, however, the Belgian has been criticised for his rather lackadaisical approach, especially when his team is out of possession.

Chelsea star Eden Hazard has admitted that his less than energetic defending can sometimes irk managers, but he has no plans to alter his playing style now.

Hazard has been in sparkling form so far in 2018-19, racking up 10 Premier League goals and 10 assists to aid Chelsea's bid to return to the Champions League next season.At times, however, the Belgian has been criticised for his rather lackadaisical approach, especially when his team is out of possession.

"I've taken a good turn since the World Cup. I feel it, even in the eyes of people.
"Before, in their eyes, it was: 'Yes, he is a very good player but can he be among the greatest?'

"But there is a time in which you have to stay grounded. For everything they have done over the last 10 years we cannot compare ourselves to them, it's impossible."

 

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Barcelona confirm Kevin-Prince Boateng signing


Barcelona have confirmed the somewhat surprising transfer of Kevin-Prince Boateng from Sassuolo.Goal reported earlier Monday that the attacker was on the verge of a shock move from the Serie A side , who he joined this past summer, to link up with the Liga champions.

The transfer includes a €8 million (£7m/$9m) option to buy, while Barca will pay a €2m loan fee for Boateng to feature for them the remainder of the season.

The 31-year-old will be presented on late on Tuesday morning, with a private contract signing set to be followed with a photo session on the Camp Nou pitch and a press conference at noon UK Time.
A statement on the club's official website reads: "Kevin-Prince Boateng is a player who will surely adapt quickly to the team. With experience of playing in four of the biggest leagues in Europe, the Premier League, the Bundesliga, Serie A and La Liga, he is a man who has scored goals wherever he has been.

"Furthermore, Boateng is a player who versatile to a fault. During his time with Las Palmas with Quique Setién as coach he played as an out and out striker, a typical number ‘9’. However, he is also able to play further back as he did at AC Milan, scoring twice against Barça in his time with the Rossoneri.

"His ability to bring people into the game means he is excellent at playing behind the main striker."Before the Blaugrana's confirmation, Boateng himself had announced the deal in an interview with Sky Sports .

"Barca, I’m coming!" he said. " I’m sad to leave Sassuolo but this is a great chance."The attacker also downplayed previous comments made about Barca's rivals Real Madrid.

In a 2017 interview, Boateng answered he preferred Real Madrid to Barcelona, while also stating in the past that he could have made it at the Bernabeu had he applied himself harder earlier in his career.However, the player says his focus is on his new club, and aiming to find the net against Real Madrid when the two sides next meet in the Spanish capital on March 2.

"Don’t ask me about Real Madrid... is just the past! I only want to focus on Barcelona and I hope to score at Bernabéu for the next Clasico.”

Barcelona will be Boateng's fourth club in the past three seasons, though the former Ghana international has fared well at each of his stops.He found the back of the net 10 times in 28 La Liga games for Las Palmas in 2016-17, followed by a move to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga, where he scored six goals in 31 league matches.

His time at Sassuolo also started well, as in 13 Serie A matches, Boateng scored four goals, though he has not found the back of the net since the end of October.Boateng will fill in attacking depth for the La Liga champions, as Barca manager Ernesto Valverde admitted the club was looking for options there after allowing Munir El Haddadi to depart earlier in the window .

He becomes the second addition during the winter window, with Barca having also signed Valencia defender Jeison Murillo in January.

 

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Rashford can reach Ronaldo and Rooney level - Solskjaer


Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has backed Manchester United's Marcus Rashford to develop into a "top class" attacker like Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.The 21-year-old scored his 41st goal in his 150th appearance for the club as they beat Brighton 2-1 on Saturday, reaching the milestone at a younger age than United legends Ronaldo and Rooney.

The England international has been key to preserving Solskjaer's perfect start as caretaker manager, scoring five goals in six games since the Norwegian replaced Jose Mourinho in December.

“He is only 21, but the maturity he is showing at times is more than 21 and his work rate,” Solskjaer told reporters. “If you look at the stats, I was told that he is younger than Ronaldo and Rooney to reach 150 appearances for Manchester United.”The coach was asked if he thinks Rashford can reach the same level as the two United icons, he said: “Definitely - he can be absolutely top class.“The more you score the more chance you have of being confident, running into the same positions.“The way he works during the week is fantastic because he practices a lot."

The 45-year-old has been impressed with Rashford's attitude off the field as well and is happy to have local boys like him and Jesse Lingard at his disposal.“He is a proper Manc,” he added. “You can’t kick him and keep him down, he will stand up for a fight and stand up for himself and a teammate.

“It is a pleasure working with him. Him and Jesse - I’ve got to say you like those proper Mancs. I worked with Jesse and saw Marcus coming through.“They enjoy each other’s company, they socialise quite a bit. When we travel they are always together.

“On the pitch they have got an understanding; that comes from being brought through by the likes of Paul McGuiness and Jimmy Ryan. They have had the coaches and know the way we want a Manchester United player to be. They understand each other.”

 

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Chelsea agree loan-to-buy £48.5m Morata deal with Atletico Madrid


Chelsea have reached an agreement with Atletico Madrid to allow Alvaro Morata to leave on loan, with the Liga club having a £48.5 million ($62m) option to sign the striker on a permanent basis, Goal understands.Morata had already reached an agreement with Atletico Madrid over his personal terms last week and he is willing to accept a lower contract than his current £120,000 per week Chelsea deal upon the activation of an option to buy.

Offloading the 26-year-old striker is also a major step in Chelsea's bid to take over AC Milan's loan deal for Gonzalo Higuain, with the Blues having already reached an agreement with the Argentine forward's parent club Juventus.

Like Morata, Higuain has been left out of his team's latest match, with Milan due to play Genoa on Monday, after Chelsea agreed a six-month loan deal with an option to extend it or sign the striker outright for £32.5 million ($42m).They will also pay Juventus on the basis of appearances, goals and season's achievements over the six-month period that they are loaning Higuain for.

Genoa's Krzysztof Piatek is set to replace Higuain at the San Siro and a £35m ($45m) deal is expected to be reached in the next 48 hours, according to the selling club's sporting director Giorgio Perinetti."After today's match against Milan, we will meet them and reach an agreement in the next 48 hours, whether he leaves or not," said Perinetti. "We spoke with Gazidis and Leonardo for two hours and we still need to evaluate the counterparts in the deal.

"This is why the deal has not been finalised yet as we need to analyse whether it will be functional for our transfer market session."The movement of strikers across Europe is part of a bigger picture as major clubs look to ensure they are not left without a reliable forward option for the rest of the season.

This is what has led to Michy Batshuayi's proposed loan move being held up, as Chelsea look to explore opportunities to cash in, with a £40m ($51m) valuation being placed on the Belgium international, who endured a disappointing first half of the season on loan at Valencia.

 

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Matic: Man Utd ready for top-four fight

Nemanja Matic says that Manchester United will do their best to finish in the top four after reviving their campaign with a strong run of form.The Red Devils looked to have been left behind after a poor start to the Premier League campaign under former manager Jose Mourinho, who was sacked following a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool.

However, since then, United have won seven on the spin in all competitions and are back to within three points of a top-four finish, with Chelsea's 2-0 defeat against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium closing the gap.

And Matic insists his side are up for the fight to finish in the top four and earn Champions League football ahead of next season.

“In the Premier League, it’s always hard,” Matic said.“We will try to give our best to reach the top four until the end of the season.“The teams in front of us have quality and they will also try to play in the Champions League next season.“But I’m sure that we have enough qualities to compete with them.

“We will give our best and we will try to make our supporters happy.”Following United's 2-1 win over Brighton, caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer reserved special praise for Matic's midfield partner Ander Herrera.

“Ander is a midfielder who is a bit different to Paul [Pogba] and to Nemanja [Matic] with their physical attributes. He runs and runs. He runs with the ball and plays it simple," Solskjaer said.

“He also makes some good runs into the box, although we let Paul do more of that job and Ashley [Young] maybe from the right-hand side, but I’ll never stop him making runs into the box and, hopefully, he’ll continue making them like he does.”United face a trip to the Emirates next in the fourth round of the FA Cup, before hosting Burnley in the Premier League.

 

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Emery claims Ozil is part of his Arsenal plans


Arsenal manager Unai Emery has one again stated that Mesut Ozil is part of his plans, despite remaining as an unused substitute in the Gunners’ 2-1 win against Chelsea on Saturday.

The 30-year has played just 155 minutes of Premier League football since Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Wolves on November 11 and has been linked with a host of clubs.

He has also incurred the wrath of a number of former players include Emmanuel Petit and Paul Marriner, both of whom have criticised Ozil’s workmate and commitment.

Yet despite this, Emery insisted Ozil could feature in the club’s next game.“He was on Saturday okay to play, but we decided not play [him],” Emery said.“I spoke with him also and I want to him be ready for the match today, for the next matches like all the players in the team.

“Against Chelsea, I have the confidence in him if he played, I think he could do like we want and the next matches we are going to need every player and also his quality,” he added.While speculation continues about Ozil’s future, his agent told Goal earlier in the month that the former Real Madrid man has no desire to depart the Emirates.

“Mesut signed a new contract last January because he saw his future at Arsenal and nothing has changed in his mind,” said Ozil’s agent, Dr. Erkut Sogut.“He wants to stay for the duration of that contract and maybe even longer. Mesut is 100 per cent committed to Arsenal Football Club. He loves the club, shares its values and does not want to be anywhere else.”

Should Ozil force his way back into Emery’s plans it would have to be at the expense of Matteo Guendouzi or Aaron Ramsey, both of whom put in excellent performances against Chelsea.

However, the former World Cup winner may well get his chance in the Gunners next game, an FA Cup fourth-round tie with Manchester United.Emery rested a number of key first-team players during the previous round against Blackpool and may well do the same this time around.

 

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Man Utd flying but Mata admits Solskjaer's resurgent side 'want more'


Juan Mata admits Manchester United “want more” after stretching a record-setting run under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to seven successive wins.

The Red Devils were going nowhere fast prior to making a change in the dugout back in December.Jose Mourinho was relieved of his duties and replaced by Solskjaer, who returned to Old Trafford on an interim basis.

He has enjoyed a dream start to life at the helm, and is yet to suffer a setback of any kind, but there is a desire within the squad he has inherited to achieve even more.

Mata wrote on his personal blog after seeing United edge out Brighton 2-1 on home soil: “We continue on our good run of results.“To win seven games from a possible seven is not a simple task in any way, so we are proud and happy with how things have gone in recent weeks. But we want more.

“We know that we are on the right track, but the most important part of the season is still ahead of us.“We have to continue in the same way if we want to achieve our targets, and we are all motivated to make the coming months very positive ones.”

“As I’ve said, the win against Brighton on Saturday was our seventh in a row. We battled through at the end, to be honest, but I believe it was deserved.“When you’re on a good run, there are games that you win which otherwise, in other circumstances, you might have ended up drawing.

“We played with energy and the desire to keep on improving. We started out by making it 2-0, thanks to a penalty from Paul [Pogba] and a great goal from [Marcus] Rashford.

“Marcus is a truly special player. He already is, and is going to continue to be, a very important player for club and country and it is a pleasure to see his progression up close.“He’s also a great lad, with his mind focused on the important things and extraordinary physical attributes. He has everything to keep on growing without slowing down, and he deserves to.”

The big games keeping on coming for United, who are now just three points adrift of the Premier League’s top four.They sit level on points with Arsenal just outside the Champions League spots, with the Gunners providing their next opposition in a heavyweight FA Cup fourth round clash.

Mata added: “Now we’re looking ahead and, on Friday evening, the FA Cup returns with a very tough clash away against Arsenal.“The Emirates is a spectacular stadium, it is always tough to play there, and this time the game is important given that we are playing to go through in a competition which, as you all know, is very important to us.

“Our opponent just beat Chelsea and will, therefore, be in a good place in terms of confidence, but we intend to keep pressing on in the cup.”

 

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Man Utd youngster McTominay agrees new contract


Manchester United youngster Scott McTominay has signed a two-year contract extension to keep him at Old Trafford until 2023.

The 22-year-old has made just eight appearances in all competitions this season and has been linked with a loan move in the January transfer window, with Celtic reportedly interested.

But having broken into the first team under Jose Mourinho last season, the midfielder is keen to continue his development with the Red Devils.

“Manchester United has been my life since the age of five and playing for the club I've always supported is all I've ever wanted to do," he said.“I'm still young and I'm learning all the time from the manager, his coaching staff and from the world-class players in the squad.”I can't wait to continue my progress at this great club.“

Interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer added: "Scott has been with the club from a very young age, he has progressed through our Academy ranks and has made fantastic progress in the last couple of years.

“Manchester United has been my life since the age of five and playing for the club I've always supported is all I've ever wanted to do," he said.

“I'm still young and I'm learning all the time from the manager, his coaching staff and from the world-class players in the squad.”I can't wait to continue my progress at this great club.“Interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer added: "Scott has been with the club from a very young age, he has progressed through our Academy ranks and has made fantastic progress in the last couple of years.

The coach awarded McTominay the 'Manager's Player of the Year' prize in his final full season at the helm, but this term his career has stalled.

Reports had suggested the midfielder could be loaned out to a club in the Scottish Premiership in the January transfer window, but no move has been forthcoming.