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The Portuguese has already secured two pieces of silverware in his debut season at Old Trafford as a result of Community Shield and EFL Cup successes. He has the opportunity to complete a hat-trick of triumphs in continental competition, with Mourinho prepared to rotate and put a top-four finish at risk in order to chase down that crown. Man Utd can’t offer Ibra new deal Following a 2-1 victory over Burnley that leaves United one point behind arch-rivals Manchester City ahead of a derby date on Thursday, the Red Devils boss said: “If we beat Celta Vigo, we go to the final and, yes, it is important to us to play Champions League, but this club wants trophies....

The Old Trafford boss admitted recently that long-term knee injuries to Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo had affected his plans for the summer transfer market, saying: “Yes, if I don’t have the players for a long period of time, obviously it affects plans.” Mou: Europa League is priority Their search for forwards has been ramped up dramatically, and Real Madrid star Morata is one of the players being considered as an alternative in the No....

The 32-year-old was caught on camera waiting for referee Craig Pawson to look away before elbowing opponent Dusan Tadic in Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Southampton. If the charge is upheld then Young is expected to miss matches against Everton, Derby County and Stoke City. Burnley defender James Tarkowski was given a three-match ban when he was caught on camera in a similar incident earlier in December. Swansea City’s Kyle Naughton was also charged for a separate an unrelated incident in their 2-1 victory over Watford on Saturday....

In the end, significant money was spent on Casemiro and Antony — two arrivals who have undoubtedly improved the squad — but Cristiano Ronaldo’s acrimonious departure has once more left them short of options up front. Based on their recent record when it comes to signing strikers, there isn’t huge optimism about getting in a good replacement, however desperate Erik ten Hag might be to find a new player in the January transfer window....

Roman Yurkov received 95.2 million rubles ($1.3 million) after a digital technical error while taking money out of his bank account at a bookmaker in Tula, Russia. The 35-year-old car salesman took advantage of an error during a technical update in his bank’s mobile application in June 2020 and withdrew funds from the account through bookmakers, according to the investigation and as reported by Lenta.ru. Yurkov said he received a message on his phone that 95 million rubles had been deposited into his VTB bank account and believed the sum was winnings from the bookmaker’s office, Mash reported....

Police say the unidentified man forced himself on shoppers at a Walmart located on Boston road in Springfield, Massachusetts at around 7:10 p.m. on August 15. A surveillance photo of the masked man was included in a social media post appealing for tips. “This suspect took an item out of a victims hands and then gave him a hug,” the Springfield Police Department wrote in a Friday Facebook post. “He told the victim ‘Just giving you a Covid hug....

Citizens complete comeback in eight-goal thriller City came back to defeat the Ligue 1 side 5-3 in their round-of-16 first leg at the Etihad Stadium, as Sergio Aguero scored a pair in the second half. With eight strikes combined, the teams set a record for the most total goals in a Champions League knockout round first leg. The teams will be back at it in an encore performance on March 15 at the Stade Louis II in Monaco....

Both sides had a couple of gilt-edged chances in the first half, with the likes of Raul Jimenez and Raheem Sterling denied on either end. In the second half, Guardiola’s men dominated possession as is their usual fashion, however, they struggled to carve out clear opportunities. In the 80th minute, Raul Jimenez broke forward from deep in a counter, dribbled past Nicolas Otamendi, and passed to Adama Traore who placed the ball past Edison Moraes and into the bottom right corner of the City goal....

Bernardo Silva opened the scoring when he lashed in a powerful shot after Leroy Sane had run in behind the defence. But City slacked off after taking the lead and Bournemouth capitalised, equalising after Callum Wilson headed home from Trevor Francis’ cross. Raheem Sterling restored City’s lead in the second half when he fired a rebound off Asmir Begovic into the roof of the net. Ilkay Gundogan made the game safe ten minutes from time when he slotted from Leroy Sane’s low cross....

City’s 4-0 beating of Bournemouth on Saturday coupled with Manchester United’s last-minute 2-2 draw with Leicester City left Pep Guardiola’s dominant side 13-points clear of Jose Mourinho’s Red Devils, who sit second in the table. That gap represents the largest lead ever by a top-flight team on Christmas day. Guardiola’s City side have won 18 times already this season, with just one draw in 19 matches to open up what appears to be an insurmountable lead at the top of the table....

After 23 rounds of matches, though, only one team stands tall, and it’s Pep Guardiola’s side. The Cityzens made a slow start to the season, but have been very dominant in the last two months. From failing to win in consecutive games in mid-December, Manchester City have now won each of their last 14 matches in all competitions, with 10 of these victories coming in the Premier League. On Sunday, Liverpool became the latest victims of Guardiola’s side....

City moved back above Liverpool into top spot on Sunday after Sergio Aguero’s goal clinched a 1-0 win over Burnley at Turf Moor. Two games remain for City as they look to retain their title, against Leicester City and Brighton and Hove Albion respectively, with two wins enough to see off Liverpool’s challenge. And Guardiola has lauded his side’s mental resilience on the back of a 12th successive league win....

Manchester City won all three of their league matches that month and Sane was a big reason why, claiming a goal and an assist in all three of his side’s matches. Sane 13/10 to score v Foxes Harry Kane had won the award for September while Sadio Mane took home the prize in August. October continued a bright start to the league season for the Germany international, as he has now scored six goals and added five assists in 11 appearances this season for City....

Since losing the UEFA Champions League final to Chelsea, it has become increasingly clear that Manchester City need a top-class striker if they are to finally win the biggest trophy in European club football. Sergio Aguero’s departure has left a gaping hole in Manchester City’s front line. Pep Guardiola’s side have been linked consistently with Harry Kane, who has publicly stated his intention to leave Tottenham Hotspur. The main sticking point for Kane and Manchester City is that he still has three years remaining on his contract at Tottenham Hotspur....

Antoine Griezmann wants to end career in MLS Antoine Griezmann has revealed that he wants to play in the MLS and finish his career there. The French forward claims that he loves the country and has been dreaming of a move to the North American country for a long time. “I want to play in MLS, I’d like to finish my career there. They have a different mindset, I love the NBA and the show business aspect of it....

The outcome at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday is likely to be viewed as a pivotal moment, whichever way this season’s title race is settled. But the victors in such battles do not always win the overall war. Here, we look at some memorable Premier League tussles between title contenders and – crucially – what happened next. Newcastle 0 Manchester United 1 (March 1996) Until Sergio Aguero authored the most dramatic finish in Premier League history, Manchester United’s pursuit of Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle United was the division’s most famous title race....

Manchester City v Crystal Palace Preview Manchester City host Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium and will look to continue their stunning run of form in all competitions in recent weeks. Pep Guardiola’s side were at their brilliant best last weekend, as Aston Villa fell to a damaging 6-1 defeat in front of their own fans. Crystal Palace have been one of the surprise packages of the season as the Eagles find themselves in the top half of the Premier League standings....

Man City (1st, 53 points) hosts Chelsea (2nd, 43 points) at the Etihad in a match that could either virtually seal the title for the Citizens in mid-January or reignite a true title challenge by the Blues. The potential six-point swing means either Man City could go a seemingly insurmountable 13 points clear at the top, or Chelsea could pull within seven and make things interesting. Chelsea is fresh off its resounding Carabao Cup semifinal victory over Tottenham, emphatically topping Spurs over two legs and serving a statement to the rest of England that Chelsea remains a force to be reckoned with....

Take nothing away from the Red Devils, they have been impressive in this tour. Winning all four of their games has just given them the confidence boost they wanted as they go into a new season. Though, in some of those games, the opposition was found wanting, you can’t say that there aren’t some clear improvements by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side. Against Tottenham, things were, as expected, spiced up a little bit and the Red Devils didn’t have it all their way....