The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Man Utd

  • Joel Obi relishes Real, Man Utd tests

    Joel Obi relishes Real, Man Utd tests

    Nigeria international Joel Obi has said pre-season matches against Real Madrid, Roma and Manchester United will test his Italian club Inter Milan ahead of the new season. Inter, who have won the Italian league championship 18 times, finished fifth last season.

    “I would say that once we’ve come this far in our preparations the friendly games can be of great help, also to see how we are in our physical condition in comparison to these great teams. Therefore it will be great tests for us,” said the Nigeria midfielder, who is back at the San Siro after a loan spell at Parma.

    “We will go there without being worried to give our all. We will play our game, then we will see how it goes.”

    The left-footed midfielder has not hidden his desire to play for Inter this season after completing another loan spell way from the San Siro.

  • Van Gaal appointed Man Utd boss

    Van Gaal appointed Man Utd boss

    Louis Van Gaal has been named as the new Manchester United manager, with Ryan Giggs working as his assistant, the BBC reports.

    The Dutchman has signed a three-year contract and will take charge at Old Trafford after leading the Netherlands at this summer’s World Cup in Brazil.

    The 62-year-old has won titles with Ajax, Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

    United sacked David Moyes in April – 10 months after he succeeded Sir Alex Ferguson, who retired last summer.

    Giggs, 40, took charge on an interim basis for the final four games of the season.

    He met Van Gaal in the Netherlands last week to talk about his future at the club as a member of the coaching staff and as a player.

    United finished seventh in the Premier League, after a title defence that featured one-sided defeats by Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.

    The club failed to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 1995-96 and will not play European football entirely for the first time in 25 years.

    Club legend Giggs, Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti and Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp had been linked to the post after Moyes’s dismissal, but Van Gaal is the man trusted to restore the club to the top of the domestic and European game.

    The new United boss is expected to get significant transfer funds to bring in new players.

  • Arsenal 0-0 Man United: Gunners, Man Utd in barren draw

    Arsenal 0-0 Man United: Gunners, Man Utd in barren draw

    Arsenal and Manchester United have played out a goalless draw in their Premier League encounter at the Emirates on Wednesday evening.

    United were the first side to threaten as Robin van Persie forced a save from Wojciech Szczesny in the centre of goal in the second minute of the game.

    Olivier Giroud wasted a decent half-chance for the hosts, as he looked to get onto a corner from Santiago Cazorla, however the Frenchman could only head wide of goal.

    Departing United skipper Nemanja Vidic also went close with a header, which was blocked on its way to goal, before Tomas Rosicky forced a good stop from David de Gea at the keeper’s bottom corner.

    Dutch striker van Persie was in again in the 18th minute as Juan Mata crafted an incisive through ball, however the United forward lashed his shot wide.

    Giroud tried his luck again before half time, this time as he was slipped the ball by Mikel Arteta, but he shot over the United goal, leaving the teams to go into the break level.

    Mata cut a rather peripheral figure in the first half, but he tried his luck with a shot from outside of the box, which swerved wide of goal as United pressed for an opener.

    Antonio Valencia spared his side’s blushes as he cleared a header from Laurent Koscielny off the line following Mesut Ozil’s corner.

  • Man Utd rival Chelsea, Liverpool for Musa Mohammed

    Manchester United have joined the battle for Nigeria U-17 World Cup winning captain Musa Mohammed.

    The Daily Star says United are hoping to win the race to sign Nigerian starlet Mohammed ahead of Chelsea, Liverpool and Barcelona.

    Chelsea and Liverpool have been keeping tabs on the young starlet and were weighing up whether to make a January bid for FC Heart Academy star.

    However, United are now ready to trump their Premier League rivals by attempting to secure Mohammed, who has also attracted the interest of Spanish giants Barcelona.

    United are also interested in Mohammed’s Nigeria teammate Kelechi Iheanacho.

  • Beckham quits football

    Beckham quits football

    Former England captain, David Beckham, announced on Thursday that he will retire from professional soccer at the end of the season, Supersport.com reports.

    “I’m thankful to PSG for giving me the opportunity to continue but I feel now is the right time to finish my career, playing at the highest level,” the 38-year-old Paris St Germain midfielder said in a statement.

    “I want to thank all my teammates, the great managers that I had the pleasure of learning from. I also want to thank the fans who have all supported me and given me the strength to succeed.”

    Beckham earned 115 caps for England, a record for an outfield player, and won the Champions League, six Premier League titles and two FA Cups with Manchester United.

    He also won league titles with Real Madrid in Spain, LA Galaxy in the United States and PSG in France.

     

  • Man Utd v Chelsea: Webb takes charge

    Howard Webb has been appointed as referee for the Premier League tie between Manchester United and Chelsea at Old Trafford today.

    The 41-year-old, who took charge of the 2010 World Cup final, is no stranger to controversial games between the two English giants with both clubs vocal critics of decisions from the official during past encounters.

    Former Liverpool player Ryan Babel infamously tweeted a mocked-up photo of Webb wearing a United shirt following a 1-0 defeat in January 2011, with the message: “And they call him one of the best referees? That’s a joke.”

    Babel subsequently became the first footballer to be disciplined by the Football Association as a result of a social media post.

    Webb also clashed with former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho following a disallowed Salomon Kalou’s goal against Blackburn in September 2007, resulting in the Portuguese demanding an apology from the referee. The last time Webb took charge of a game involving both United and Chelsea was March’s FA Cup quarter-final, which ended 2-2.

  • Glazers won’t cash in on Man Utd

    Manchester United’s owners will not sell the club for “many, many years” despite ongoing interest, according to vice-chairman Ed Woodward.

    The sell-off of 10% of the Glazers’ shares in the club in the IPO sale in August raised some questions over the American family’s long-term involvement but Woodward said they had no interest in cashing in the rest of their holding.

    Woodward admitted though that he could not rule out one of the six Glazer siblings selling their holding at some point in the future.

    Woodward said: “There is always interest in this business. It is a phenomenal brand and club, but they are not willing sellers at all, they won’t even engage, they are long-term investors.

    “It’s a very popular business that people have interest in. The answer is: ‘not for sale’. I talk to them [the Glazers] every day and the excitement they have in this club is undiminished and I don’t see them selling completely more many, many years.”

    Woodward did accept however that one of the Glazers could dispose of their shares at some point.

    He added: “They could – they are a family of six siblings and from time to time, seven to 10 years, who knows if one wants to sell a small piece or not.”

    Woodward revealed that India and Australia are both on a shortlist of countries for United to tour in the summer.

    The club are also to open an office on the east coast of the USA to try to cash in on growing interest in football in North America.