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Cristiano Ronaldo predicted Michael Carrick’s greatness before anyone else

3Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Cristiano Ronaldo predicted Michael Carrick’s greatness before anyone else

Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest players in the storied history of Manchester United, and while his second stint at the club was not an entirely fruitful one, his impact is still felt at the club. Players like Diogo Dalot improved after working with Cristiano, and the legendary Portuguese forward also subtly sowed the seeds for manager Michael Carrick to come up and save this club. In December 2021 when Carrick was briefly in the dugout for Man United, Cristiano tweeted high praise for his former Manchester United teammate in the midfield, calling him a "class act" when he was a player while predicting that Carrick would become a "great coach" in the future. He said, "Nothing is impossible for this guy." Well, we are seeing Cristiano's prediction come true before our very ...

Arsenal fans can’t be mad at Riccardo Calafiori’s transfer wish

2Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Arsenal fans can’t be mad at Riccardo Calafiori’s transfer wish

Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori has been as good as advertised since joining in summer 2024 after a sensational breakout season with fairytale Serie A side Bologna and the Italian national team at the European Championships, and while he has gotten along perfectly well in North London for the new title favorites, he is still dreaming of a return to the Italian top flight. As relayed by Italian transfer reporter Gianluca Di Marzio, Calafiori admitted that he feels there is unfinished business at his first club, the historic AS Roma in the capital, as he never got to celebrate with the ultras due to COVID-19, "I want to return to Roma at some point. I can't predict the future but it's unfinished business for me. I was 18, it felt like a dream at Roma. But then COVID happened, I couldn...

Manchester United have picked out their top 3 Casemiro replacements

2Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Manchester United have picked out their top 3 Casemiro replacements

Manchester United are going to be one of the biggest buyers of midfield talent in the summer 2026 transfer window, and nobody would be surprised if they landed two top class options to bolster their squad this year. According to a report from Edu Burgos of Diario AS, Manchester United have a budget of 200 million euros prepared to address their midfield, and they are specifically looking to replace the legendary Casemiro, who may be ready to move on to the final stage of his career this summer. Burgos says that Man United have narrowed down their list of five candidates they are interested in to a top three. Newcastle United stars comprise the majority of the list in Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes, who are the two biggest dream names for Premier League clubs looking for a new midf...

Mohamed Salah quietly sets concerning personal worst record

28Feb

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Mohamed Salah quietly sets concerning personal worst record

Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah worked his way back into Arne Slot's starting lineup after a brief exit, but he continues to concern Kopites with a poor record in front of goal, now failing to score in 10 straight games. As relayed by Centre Goals, despite Liverpool dominating relegation candidates West Ham United 5-2 this weekend with three goal contributions from Hugo Ekitike, Salah failed to get involved in the party on the right wing, now making it a personal record 10 straight games without a goal in a Premier League game for the Egyptian icon. It is a career worst for Salah, who is one of the greatest players in Premier League history but has not looked like it this season. Salah's dribbling ability and speed have noticeably taken a huge hit, as Father Time has very much caught ...

Max Allegri addresses rumors on his AC Milan future

28Feb

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Max Allegri addresses rumors on his AC Milan future

Former Juventus manager and serial Scudetto winner Max Allegri has pulled AC Milan up to second place in Serie A, and despite rumors about a potential parting of ways with the club, Allegri is stating publicly that there is no discontent behind the scenes. Ahead of Milan's next game against relegation candidates Cremonese, Allegri said, via Fabrizio Romano, “There’s total harmony with AC Milan. We are on the same page, working together. The club is planning for AC Milan future. I am happy to be here”. It would be insanity for Milan to part ways with Allegri, but the rumors come more from the idea of there being disagreements on future planning between Allegri and the club's leadership, which has been notorious for skimping on quality in the recent past. But it looks like it is all...

Arne Slot is about to make the Rio Ngumoha decision Liverpool fans are begging for

27Feb

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Arne Slot is about to make the Rio Ngumoha decision Liverpool fans are begging for

Liverpool teenage sensation Rio Ngumoha is having some game-changing performances off the bench this season, and now manager Arne Slot is having difficulty denying the 17-year-old from having his day. Per a report from Paul Joyce of the Sunday Times, via Anfield Sector, Slot is planning to give Ngumoha more opportunities to shine going forward and thinks his special one-on-one qualities and explosiveness will ensure the Reds end the 2025/26 Premier League season strong. Despite spending big on Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, and still others, the reigning Premier League champions in Slot's first season as manager have taken a big step backwards in 2025/26 and are only just recently back on the verge of the Champions League qualification places. Mohamed Salah's decline...

Michael Carrick has a surprising opinion of Manuel Ugarte

27Feb

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Michael Carrick has a surprising opinion of Manuel Ugarte

Manchester United spent a whopping 60 million euros on Manuel Ugarte in the summer 2024 transfer window after he shone for both Benfica and PSG, but he has been such a disaster at Old Trafford that fans view him as the club's worst player. Even new manager Michael Carrick, a former deep-lying Man United midfielder himself, has stopped starting Ugarte at all, but his public comments on the Uruguayan man seem to stand in stark contrast to that. Ahead of Sunday's big home game against Crystal Palace, Carrick spoke extensively about Ugarte at the press conference and gave the 24-year-old a great deal of praise. Carrick said, “I like Manu a lot. He's been terrific around the group. I'm hugely impressed with his attitude and how he goes about it and his training qualities. He's got a lo...

Manchester United expected to add two big names to manager wishlist

26Feb

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Manchester United expected to add two big names to manager wishlist

Manchester United are enjoying a great deal of success under interim manager Michael Carrick, but the Red Devils are looking at some big names who could potentially replace the former Man United center midfielder in Julian Nagelsmann and Roberto De Zerbi. That's according to transfer reporter Ben Jacobs, who dropped a lot of great nuggets in his appearance on The United Stand. Per Jacobs, Nagelsmann is open to joining the Premier League this summer, presumably after his World Cup duties with Germany are done, and both he and RDZ are expected to be on the club's final managerial shortlist. De Zerbi has Premier League experience and was excellent at Brighton for a period of time before things fell apart. He's an effective coach, but he is risky since he has not shown he can ever succee...

Bayern Munich have fully decided who will replace Manuel Neuer

26Feb

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Bayern Munich have fully decided who will replace Manuel Neuer

Bayern Munich legendary goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is weighing up whether or not he will retire at the end of the 2025/26 Bundesliga and Champions League seasons, and if he does, Die Roten are going to forge ahead with Jonas Urbig as his successor. Per a report from Sport Bild, via iMiaSanMia, Bayern have no interest in signing another goalkeeper to compete with Urbig as the No. 1, should Neuer retire. The No. 2 could be Daniel Peretz or Alexander Nubel, or it could even be someone else, depending on how the summer window plays out. For years, Bayern have contemplated replacing Neuer, even first tabbing former Schalke captain Nubel as his replacement. But Neuer has never relinquished the job, and even as he has shown decline, that's only from being the world's best to simply being good....

Vinicius Junior humbled Jose Mourinho further with an embarrassing new record

26Feb

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

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Vinicius Junior humbled Jose Mourinho further with an embarrassing new record

Real Madrid fans will always love Jose Mourinho for how he led their club as manager in the early 2010s, but after his disgraceful comments minimizing racism, it felt good to watch Vinicius Junior sink him. Vinicius Jr. scored a brilliant opening goal that was shrouded by controversy afterwards in the first leg, and then he sealed the tie in the second leg with another goal on the break, meaning that he scored in both ties against Benfica. According to Madrid Xtra, that's actually a record. In addition to all the other history Vinicius Junior and Real Madrid made at Jose Mourinho's expense, Vini Jr. is the first player to ever score in both ties against a Mourinho-led side. Mourinho is a manager famously known for his hard-nosed defenses and stability, going back to his days at Po...