Premier League
Rangnick calls for Ronaldo and Man United team mates to find scoring touch
Manchester United coach Ralf Rangnick has called for Cristiano Ronaldo and his attacking team mates to find their goalscoring touch in order to avoid further frustrating results.
United crashed out of the FA Cup last Friday against Middlesbrough, losing on penalties following a 1-1 draw having had 30 shots at goal in the match, before then amassing 22 further efforts at Burnley in another 1-1 draw on Tuesday.
Ronaldo missed a penalty and had 10 shots at goal in total against Middlesbrough without finding the net, before missing a late header at Burnley. The Portuguese forward’s manager has seen enough.
“It’s not only about Cristiano Ronaldo,” Rangnick told a news conference on Friday ahead of United’s weekend clash with Southampton. “He should score more goals, it’s obvious, but this is not only an issue with Cristiano.
“It’s an issue with the other players, especially the offensive players. We don’t score enough goals, if you bear in mind how many chances we create, and this is also something that needs to get better in the next couple of weeks.
“At Burnley, in 70 of those 90 minutes, it was very, very, very close to the game plan we spoke before the game and now it’s about rewarding ourselves and also getting the results we deserve.”
The draw at Burnley meant United dropped out of the Premier League top four, with the jury remaining out on whether Rangnick has had a positive effect on the side to date.
The German, however, insists the club are improving steadily.
“I was fully aware that this was a process and would take some time,” Rangnick added. “The development is obvious, even in those last two games. In football it is about getting the reward, the best result, and in those two games that was the only thing I could fault us on.
“It is about improving in terms of performance and results. The team has developed, even the players realise themselves how much they have improved, especially in control of the game.”
Rangnick also confirmed three players will be missing for Saturday’s clash with Southampton at Old Trafford.
Eric Bailly is still struggling with a swollen ankle after the Africa Cup of Nations, midfielder Nemanja Matic has a shin issue, while Brazilian Fred remains in isolation having contracted COVID-19.
-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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