European Leagues

Ten Hag has Man Utd backing despite Liverpool loss

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has the backing of senior Old Trafford figures to deliver the sustained success the club craves.

After surviving an eighth-placed finish last season – United’s worst since 1990 – thanks to the FA Cup final win against Manchester City, the Dutchman is under pressure again after Sunday’s 3-0 home defeat by Liverpool.

The result dropped United to 14th in the Premier League, with three points from their opening three games.

If they lose at Southampton after the international break on 14 September, it will represent their worst start since 1986-87, when they picked up one point from their first four games. Within two months, Ron Atkinson was sacked and replaced by Sir Alex Ferguson.

For now at least, Ten Hag has the support of the new football structure put in place by co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Speaking to reporters before the Liverpool game, both chief executive Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth confirmed that although neither was involved in the post-season review that determined Ten Hag would keep his job, even in the event of a heavy defeat to Liverpool – which turned into reality – the Dutchman still had their backing.

“It was a decision taken prior to both of our arrivals, but we are very happy with it,” said Berrada.

“Erik has our full backing. We think he is the right coach for us.

“We have worked very closely together in this transfer window and we are going to continue working very closely with him to help get the best results out of the team.”

Although Brighton sacked Chris Hughton as manager three months after Ashworth began work as the Seagulls technical director in 2019, Eddie Howe remained as Newcastle manager throughout the 53-year-old’s 19 months at St James’ Park.

Ashworth said it was not unusual for a sporting director to link up with a manager already in place.

“Very rarely do you go into a job as a sporting director and there is no manager in place,” he added.

“All I can do is reiterate that I’ve really enjoyed working with Erik for the last eight weeks.

“My job is to support him in every way I possible can, whether that’s operationally, with recruitment, medical, psychology, [and] the training ground flow to allow him to fully focus on the training pitch and match tactical plan, to deliver success for Manchester United.”

Premier League

Scholes suggests Amorim may need to offload up to 14 players at Man United

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes believes that current manager Ruben Amorim may need to offload up to 14 players as part of a major rebuild.

Scholes stated that Amorim faces a far bigger rebuilding job than Mikel Arteta did at Arsenal, citing the challenges Amorim has encountered since taking over at Old Trafford. The 40-year-old manager recently referred to the team as the worst in the club’s history.

Scholes highlighted Arteta’s transformation of Arsenal, which began when he inherited a team in disarray. Arteta’s success came through significant player changes, such as moving on Matteo Guendouzi, Mesut Ozil, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Amorim appears to be following a similar path. He has left Marcus Rashford out of his matchday squad for over a month and has also sidelined Casemiro.

“The trouble Amorim’s got is there’s not just three of them,” Scholes told The Overlap fan debate. “You could be talking about 13 or 14 of them he doesn’t want.”

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Slot rests key players for Champions League clash against PSV

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Liverpool manager Arne Slot has opted to leave out several key players for their upcoming Champions League match against PSV on Wednesday night.

Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, and seven other prominent players have not made the trip to the Netherlands, with Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konaté, Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Luis Díaz also being rested.

Slot is focusing on Liverpool’s busy schedule, with important Premier League and Carabao Cup fixtures ahead.

Caoimhin Kelleher is set to start in goal, while fringe players such as Wataru Endo, Darwin Núñez, Federico Chiesa, and Harvey Elliott are expected to feature. Cody Gakpo, a former PSV player, will also be part of the squad and could face his old team.

Liverpool’s squad for the match includes:

Goalkeepers: Kelleher, Jaros, Davies.
Defenders: Quansah, Bradley, Norris, Nallo, Tsimikas, Robertson.
Midfielders: Endo, Mabaya, McConnell, Morrison, Morton, Nyoni.
Forwards: Chiesa, Gakpo, Elliott, Kone-Doherty, Danns, Núñez.

Premier League

PGMOL stands by referee Michael Oliver amid controversial red card, assigns him to key fixtures

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has decided not to drop referee Michael Oliver for the upcoming Premier League fixtures despite recent controversy.

Oliver has faced criticism for his decision to send off Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly during Saturday’s match against Wolves. The 39-year-old referee issued a straight red card to Lewis-Skelly after he caught Wolves defender Matt Doherty’s calf and ankle with his studs. The decision was upheld by VAR, and Arsenal secured a 1-0 victory at Molineux.

There had been speculation that Oliver would be sidelined due to the backlash and online abuse. However, he is scheduled to referee Wednesday’s Champions League clash between Barcelona and Atalanta.

The Premier League has confirmed that Oliver will officiate Ipswich Town’s match against Southampton at Portman Road on Saturday.

Additionally, he has been assigned to handle next month’s rescheduled Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool at Goodison Park.