Cavani & Rashford start, no van de Beek: Predicted Manchester United XI vs Arsenal

Manchester United welcome Arsenal to Old Trafford looking to build on their four-game unbeaten streak stretching back to the 4-1 win away at Newcastle United.

The Red Devils romped home to a comfortable 5-0 midweek win over RB Leipzig in the Champions League, thanks to a hat-trick from hometown hero Marcus Rashford.

However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has some big decisions to make, with Edinson Cavani, Bruno Fernandes and Rashford all pushing for starts.

Football FanCast have taken a look at how we think Solskjaer will set his side up for the clash with Mikel Arteta’s men, which sees the club legend make three changes to the team that beat RB Leipzig.

United’s first-choice goalkeeper David de Gea will most likely keep the gloves, as the Spanish international has impressed in recent weeks, having kept two consecutive clean sheets in a row.

The 29-year-old should take his place between the sticks behind a back four consisting of club captain Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof, with Luke Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka alongside them in their usual positions on opposite sides, as Alex Telles has tested positive for coronavirus.

Fred and Paul Pogba impressed against RB Leipzig so both midfielders should keep their places in the starting line-up, whilst Nemanja Matic drops to the bench to make room for Bruno Fernandes.

Speaking in the pre-match press conference, Solskjaer admitted United are starting to look like themselves again after a dramatic U-turn in results. He said: “At the moment, we are looking like a Man United squad because I’ve got opportunities, I’ve got options for places.

“Any successful team in the modern era of football has had that option to rest players and to rotate.”Former Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani is in contention to start as Anthony Martial serves the remainder of his three-game ban after he received a red card in the humiliating 6-1 defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur.Rashford has hit a hot streak, as he has scored four goals in his past three games, which means he is expected to start on the left wing, whilst Mason Greenwood seems to have recovered from his recent injury, so summer signing Donny van de Beek could be benched for the game against the Gunners.

AND in other news, Manchester United ace Marcus Rashford outshone Bruno Fernandes to steal the show against RB Leipzig…

Chelsea: Frank Lampard could snub Man United with surprise move for Kasper Schmeichel

Chelsea have reportedly joined the race to bank the signature of Leicester’s Kasper Schmeichel this summer.

The Denmark international is reportedly high on the priority list of Manchester United after being linked with a familiar move to Old Trafford. Schmeichel would follow in his father’s footsteps if the move comes to fruition, but according to The Times, Chelsea are also considering a swoop for the shot-stopper.

A report from The Mirror claims Man United are eyeing up the son of their legendary ex-goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel. The Dane made 96 saves in the Premier League last season, the same amount as David de Gea and also kept the same amount of clean sheets with 13 (via Premier League).

No price tag has been specified but Schmeichel’s current Transfermarkt value is £8.5million, although it’s highly unlikely Leicester will let him go for such a low fee.

Chelsea have now added themselves to the running as they look to improve on the mistakes caused by Kepa Arrizabalaga. The Spaniard hasn’t been up to scratch over the last campaign and Frank Lampard no longer trusts him to safeguard his side in the net.

Whilst United may be the favourites for Schmeichel due to the family connection, Chelsea could arguably table the better offer. Not only are they looking to make a new goalkeeper their first choice, but Roman Abramovich has lined Lampard’s pockets with £120million for this transfer window.

Armed with a hefty summer budget, the Blues could have enough to convince the Foxes to let Schmeichel make the move to West London.

Marina Granovskaia could also outdo herself if she gets this deal over the line, having already snagged Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner, with Kai Havertz also agreeing personal terms.

Do you want to see Kasper Schmeichel join Chelsea? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Liverpool news: Tony Cascarino says Salah could leave Anfield soon

Liverpool have had an incredible 2019/20. Jurgen Klopp has finally done it and both the Premier League and the Champions League crown returned back to Anfield in style. Now, however, with those milestones out of the way, it will be interesting to see what the future holds for the Reds’ stars.

Of course, as is the case with everyone else, Liverpool players have also been linked with a move away from the club, not least because some want a new challenge and a change in scenery.

According to Tony Cascarino, who featured on talkSPORT again, Mohamed Salah could be one of the players to leave sooner rather than later. Here’s what he said for the aforementioned outlet: “I don’t quite see him having the same intensity as he once did. I’m hoping I’m wrong and that’s just a small blip. He was just not quite at the races [against Arsenal]. I thought he really struggled to get into the game.”

The Millwall icon is, of course, referring to Liverpool’s loss against Arsenal in the Community Shield game and seems to think the Egyptian is simply not that invested anymore.

Salah has been an incredible servant to the Reds’ badge, netting 19 goals and providing a total of ten assists during their title-winning campaign last term.

Needless to say, he is one of their biggest stars and one of the most influential players on the pitch. But according to Cascarino, he simply doesn’t seem to be as motivated as he once was.

Maybe this is indeed due to Liverpool conquering both England and Europe, leaving the Egyptian yearning for a new challenge.

Verdict

Losing Salah would be a huge hit for Klopp. It’s looking increasingly likely that Liverpool themselves won’t exactly be splashing the cash in the ongoing summer transfer window so finding a replacement would be a terribly difficult thing to do.

Not to mention that there’s not really a new Salah just waiting for them somewhere in the market.

Liverpool: Fans rave over Raphael Honigstein’s in-depth analysis of Jurgen Klopp

Liverpool may have won the Premier League on the pitch but Jurgen Klopp was with the Reds every step of the way.

Klopp, who arrived at Anfield in 2015 after a successful stint in charge of Borussia Dortmund, had his work cut out right from the start.

Taking over the reins from Brendan Rodgers, he had to pick up the pieces left by his predecessor and he rebuilt the Reds into a world-beating side that has won the Champions League and Premier League in consecutive seasons.

The Reds are deserved winners as they have run away at the top of the table and Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City couldn’t keep up with the Merseysiders’ momentum. Liverpool are currently 23 points clear of City with seven games remaining.

Guardiola has confirmed that Liverpool will receive a guard of honour from the former champions when the sides meet on Thursday.

Writing in The Athletic, European football expert Raphael Honigsten paid tribute to the German’s success, noting that “he would never agree to a statue of himself”, although there will be plenty of supporters who strongly disagree.

Unsurprisingly, loads of Liverpool fans raved over Honigstein’s “fantastic” piece with one fan tweeting that it is a “great read”.

Scroll down through some of the glowing reactions so far…

Liverpool fans, should the club erect a statue for Klopp already? Let us know in the comments below!

Coventry: Kayden Jackson discusses Sky Blues transfer link

Coventry City transfer target Kayden Jackson has touched on interest shown in him by the Sky Blues and his current contract situation at Ipswich Town.

Coventry boss Mark Robins has followed up promotion to the Championship with a number of significant signings this summer.

Gustavo Hamer and Julien Dacosta were two of the first names through the door at the club, whilst Marcel Hilssner has also been joined by former Aston Villa youngster Callum O’Hare and Ryan Giles.

With preparations for the 2020/21 season well underway, Robins is also seemingly keen to bolster his attacking options and a link to Ipswich striker Jackson has developed in recent weeks.

Jackson, who signed for Ipswich in 2018 from Accrington Stanley, is entering the final year of his deal at Portman Road. Talks are said to have been ongoing between the £720,000-valued striker and his current club over an option to extend but it is claimed that the Suffolk outfit’s latest offer has been rejected.

That recent stall in talks has prompted the likes of Coventry to show interest in the striker, who netted an impressive 11 goals in 32 games last season.

Jackson has now discussed his immediate future, telling East Anglian Daily Times: “Whatever is going on is separate to anything, I don’t really deal too much on that side. It’s all down to the agent.

“At the end of the day I’m an Ipswich player and I’ve got to contract here potentially for another two years, so for me it’s all about concentrating on the football and the season ahead.

“Last season was a massive disappointment for all of us. I’m just looking to improve on what I did and hopefully we can get the end result that we wanted last season.”

Robins has done excellent business in the transfer window so far this season but one area where he hasn’t improved is at centre forward, and it may be that Jackson is the perfect summer arrival.

The 11-goal League One striker is seemingly stalling on a new deal with Ipswich and a move to Coventry does not seem out of the question. Given his scoring return last season, the Sky Blues could probably do a lot worse than get him in ahead of their Championship campaign.

Do you think Jackson would be a good signing for Coventry? Let us know in the comments section below…

Crystal Palace: Alexander Sorloth aims sly dig at the Eagles for their limited ambitions

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Alexander Sorloth has aimed at sly dig at his parent club Crystal Palace for their limited ambitions.

The Norway international left Selhurst Park back in the summer to join Turkish outfit Trabzonspor on a two-year loan deal, where he has been in fine form alongside former Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge in attack.

Sorloth has scored 12 goals in 23 appearances, while also recording four assists for the Süper Lig side.

In contrast, the 24-year-old scored just once in 20 appearances for the Eagles following a £9m move from FC Midtjylland – even that sole strike came against Championship side Swansea in the Carabao Cup.

What did he say?

Sorloth told Trabzonspor’s official magazine (via Gazete Futbol): “There were two other reasons for my decision. I knew that the Süper Lig was relatively balanced.

“At the end of the season, you also get the chance to present yourself in the Europa League or the Champions League.

“Another reason was the strong team and the corresponding title ambitions of Trabzonspor. In comparison, Crystal Palace is a club whose primary goal is always to stay up.”

Sly dig at the south Londoners

Sorloth has basically aimed a subtle dig towards his parent club here, in saying that their ambitions do not match those of Trabzonspor’s.

While both Trabzonspor and Palace’s situations are vastly different, you can understand Sorloth’s apparent ill-feeling towards the Eagles for the way in which he was treated following his move to the Premier League.

The Norwegian was handed just four Premier League starts by Roy Hodgson after his £9m move to England, before being loaned out to Belgian side Gent for the second half of last season.

Upon his return, he was then shipped out on the two-year loan to Trabzonspor.

In fairness, you can understand why he sounds a tad bitter towards Palace, although it must be noted that Trabzonspor and Palace’s fortunes are vastly different in terms of the quality of their respective divisions.

In other news, Crystal Palace fans on Twitter have been drooling over this Dougie Freedman signing…

Leicester: Former Celtic ace Moussa Dembele could be ideal replacement for Jamie Vardy

Leicester have been named amongst those interested in acquiring the services of Lyon striker Moussa Dembele this summer.

Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic connections continue to cast light on some tempting transfer targets ahead of next season. The French forward, who joined Lyon from the Scottish outfit in 2018, is reportedly on the manager’s radar. A price hasn’t been set, but Dembele’s current Transfermarkt value sits at £36million, which isn’t an unreasonable amount by any means.

According to France Football (via Sport Witness), Rodgers is keen on reuniting with his former player and using his clinical nature to bolster the Foxes’ attack. However, Dembele is aware of the interest and isn’t making Leicester a ‘priority decision’ despite enjoying his time under Rodgers at Celtic.

The 23-year-old hasn’t specified why he doesn’t see the Midlands outfit as an attractive move, but that could all change if they secure Champions League football next season.

As it stands, Leicester are third in the Premier League table after a fantastic run of form, pushing Manchester City to the wire for second place. With just four points between them and the holding champions, they could well finish in their highest position since their 2015/16 fairytale win.

Club icon Jamie Vardy is still a regular, but he isn’t getting any younger and Leicester must be equipped to fill his boots. The England international currently leads the entire Premier League with the most goals scored – his tally of 19 trumps the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mohamed Salah who have both also had prolific seasons.

Dembele’s stats are numbers to be marvelled at and could be the answer to replacing Vardy once his powers start to diminish. The Frenchman has a 2019/20 season total of 22 goals, just falling shy of last campaign’s tally of 23 (via Transfermarkt).

If Leicester secure Champions League football and continue to show grit in the Premier League, they could sway the striker into joining the King Power after all. And if there is a possibility to sign him up, Rodgers should do everything he can to make that happen.

Would you like to see the Foxes snap up Moussa Dembele, Leicester fans? Join the discussion in the comments below!

Man United summer target Dani Olmo can impress potential suitors vs Atalanta

This article is part of Football FanCast’s One to Watch series, which focuses on those players we think are particularly worth keeping an eagle-eye on as the 2019/20 season unfolds.

Club football has finally returned after the international break.

And with club football back in full motion, so is the Champions League which gets back underway on Tuesday.

Unfortunately for Manchester United fans, the Red Devils won’t be competing in Europe’s most coveted competition but there are still good reasons for them to tune in to some of the matches.

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One game that might be of special interest to them could be Atalanta’s clash with Dinamo Zagreb as it will hand them the opportunity to watch one of their reported transfer targets in action – Dani Olmo.

According to some recent reports, the young 21-year-old midfielder is currently a pretty hot prospect on the market as the likes of Juventus and Barcelona are interested in acquiring his services and have joined the English clubs in the race, as per reports coming from Tuttosport (via The Sun) and Mundo Deportivo respectively.

Of course, Manchester United are still very much one of the clubs that are interested in the youngster plying his trade in Croatia’s top-flight and their interest goes a couple of months back as well, with Sportske suggesting the club were willing to pay €40m (£34.1m) for his services.

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And it also doesn’t really come as a surprise at all.

Olmo has been fantastic for Dinamo Zagreb throughout their 2019/20 campaign and even crowned his Spain debut with a lovely goal.

With such tough competition from various clubs, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men might have to make a pretty tempting offer in order to land the Spaniard and lure him to Old Trafford.

So far in the ongoing campaign, Olmo has scored six goals and assisted another six in a total of 17 games for Dinamo Zagreb, scoring and assisting three in their Champions League qualifiers and also bagging one of each in the group stage as well.

By all means, he definitely looks like someone the Red Devils could use in their squad and someone who may turn out to become a superstar in the not so distant future.

For that reason, Manchester United fans should not miss Dinamo Zagreb’s game this Tuesday evening.

Elsewhere, the Red Devils might be on a prowl for a well-known name to their fans that’s currently playing over in Italy…

Newcastle fans buzzing as Federico Fernandez scoops TOTW place

Newcastle supporters haven’t had a huge amount to shout about this season but a 2-2 draw with Manchester City last Saturday was definitely an added plus point of a so-far underwhelming Steve Bruce era.

The former Aston Villa boss has generated a rather interesting style of football which relies on the Magpies soaking up the pressure and then hitting the opposition on the counter.

Bruce’s side average just 37.9% of the ball which is rather alarming. However, in some cases, it’s paid dividends and the draw with City was fine evidence of that.

One of the stand out performers from that game was defender Federico Fernandez who kept the Citizens at bay with composure and solidity. In fact, he was so solid that Toon hero Alan Shearer named him in his Premier League Team of the Week.

It was enough to generate a reaction from the St James’ Park faithful who were buzzing that the side had a place for the Argentine. Some of the responses on Twitter centred around their general love for the player as they congratulated the man who signed from Swansea in the summer of 2018

But there was more analysis from further individuals who took time to ponder Bruce’s team selection. The 30-year-old hasn’t always been a favourite under the experienced boss and after the match with City, he’s started just five times in the Premier League this season.

However, after his most recent display, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he now picked up a regular slot in the team. Fabian Schar returned to the bench on Saturday but the team’s performance might be enough to keep him among the substitutes. One fan couldn’t understand why Bruce hadn’t been picking him until recently.

The general qualities of the Argentine were also hailed as numerous superlatives were thrown in Fernandez’s direction. One supporter even called him a colossus for his efforts against Pep Guardiola’s men. Another made reference to a run forward he made. It’s easy to see why those verdicts were given too.

Via WhoScored, Fernandez made five interceptions, completed two tackles and also produced a mighty ten clearances. With that in mind, his selection in Shearer’s TOTW seems fully vindicated.

Meanwhile, check out the photo that Newcastle will need to see a lot more of in 2019/20.

Liverpool won’t be caught if they beat Man City, says Paul Merson

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Paul Merson has said in his Sky Sports column that he doesn’t think Manchester City will be able to catch Liverpool if the Reds win at Anfield on Sunday.

What did he say?

Jurgen Klopp’s side currently lead the table by six points, with the Citizens second. A victory for the Merseyside club when the two meet at the weekend would mean that the home team would be nine clear after 12 games.

Watch the moment Adam Lallana broke United hearts at Old Trafford in the video below…

Should that happen, the 51-year-old former Arsenal midfielder thinks it will be too much for Pep Guardiola and co to claw back.

He explained: “Liverpool and Manchester City were both on the floor against Aston Villa and Southampton but yet again they found the answer. Both clubs are relentless in their pursuit of the title but I don’t see a way back for City if Liverpool win on Super Sunday.

“Liverpool will move nine points clear with a win at Anfield and, as we saw at Villa Park, they simply don’t know how to lose, so I just don’t where they would lose three matches to let City back in.”

City the masters of the comeback

On paper, it would appear to be a huge task for City to pull back nine points on their rivals. However, history tells us that the champions excel in such a position.

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Last season, they were seven points behind the Reds with just 18 games left when the two met at the Etihad Stadium on January 3rd. City would prevail 2-1 in that match, but the gap would go out to five again before Vincent Kompany went on to lift the title come the season end in May.

In the 2011/12 season, they pulled off an even better comeback. With just six games remaining, they trailed Manchester United by a huge eight points. However, they stayed alive and took the title race to final day. Sergio Aguero scored in the final minute against QPR and the rest, as they say, is history.

Therefore, a nine-point gap with 26 matches left will not faze City in the slightest. Yes, this Liverpool side is special, as they have shown by winning 10 and drawing one of their first 11 games of the Premier League campaign, but there is still a long way to go, and we still don’t know whether the Reds will be able to hold their nerve should they have a large advantage.

The last thing they can afford to do is be as complacent and dismissive of City’s ability to turn things round as Paul Merson has been here.

As we have seen down the years, anything can happen in English football’s top tier, as these two sides know only too well.

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