Mpira

"City had loads of big names and would become champions, but United were already champions. The energy was different, the aura. I fell in love with it straight away." "My contract was up and City released me and signed a paper saying I could leave on a free. "The next day, I drove to City’s training ground at Carrington to collect my stuff.  The reserve manager told me I had to train, but I told him I was leaving. I didn’t say where. "Then I drove around the corner and signed for Manchester United." There have been many people who have played football for both Manchester United and Manchester City, but very few have ever made the direct switch between the two clubs. Denis Law and Carlos Tevez are the most notable for directly swapping red for sky blue, with Jadon Sancho the most recent example of a player to represent both sides of the city. It was deadline of the 2012 transfer window when young defender Frederic Veseli crossed the great divide. The promis...

Luis Suarez has been in the rival camp of Real Madrid for a large part of his career. He established himself as a legend during his time at Barcelona. And then, he would end up joining Atletico Madrid, for whom he won a La Liga title as well. One of the greatest players of his generation without a shadow of a doubt, the Uruguayan recently had some good things to say about one of Los Blancos’ star. The player in question is none other than Federico Valverde, who is a teammate of Suarez for the Uruguay national team. Valverde has been very impressive this season, has taken his game to the next level and seems to have established himself as a regular starter for Real Madrid, whether it be as a right winger or as a midfielder. He is just that good. Suarez even as far as to draw comparisons between Valverde and Steven Gerrard, who he played with at Liverpool. As reported by Marca, talking about the Real Madrid midfielder, the former Barcelona star said: “I, honestly, and there are the newsp...

Real Madrid are making plans to lure Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo to the Bernabeu for a fee in the region of £44million next summer, according to reports. The Champions League winners, who strengthened their defence this summer with ex-Chelsea centre-back Antonio Rudiger and £72m defensive midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni, are keen to continue making improvements to Carlo Ancelotti's side. Eager to upgrade at full-back, Real Madrid have reportedly identified Cancelo as the ideal buy in defence next summer. Real Madrid are 'plotting a move for Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo next summer' The Bernabeu chiefs are reportedly eager to continue bolstering Carlo Ancelotti's defence According to AS, Los Blancos are confident a deal in the region of £45m can be struck between the two Champions League outfits, even though Cancelo's current deal expires in 2027. Pep Guardiola has increasingly relied on the Portuguese full-back at the Etihad both for versatility ...

Cristiano Ronaldo’s sister Katia Aveiro has lashed out at his critics. She took to social media to address her brother’s vile criticism. “You have to give a hand to those who have always given theirs for Portugal.” “But the Portuguese are sick, petty, soulless, stupid, ungrateful and forever ungrateful.” “There are those who give him a hand, damn it.” “It’s cruel. And it’s been so much, but so much that he gave and gives, damn. “The one who’s sitting is called Cristiano Ronaldo, and he’s just the best player in the world.” “I read it on a neighbouring network and sign it below.” “I only change a paragraph; he has his family and those who love him close to him. They will always be by his side, whatever happens.” “But no, It doesn’t surprise me at all nowadays; the Portuguese spit on the plate they eat; it’s always been like that. “That’s why, when someone appears from the ashes and changes mentalities, it bothers. With you always, my king. Calm down.” Ronaldo’s form has been a cause for...

DENMARK under-21 head coach Jesper Sorensen believes it is only a matter of time before Matt O’Riley makes a move to the English Premier League amid interest from Newcastle United. The Celtic midfielder was scouted by Newcastle as he scored against Croatia for the Danish under-21 side during the week, and Sorensen says that anyone watching the match couldn’t fail to be impressed by the contribution of O’Riley. And while he stressed that Celtic is a wonderful environment for O’Riley to continue improving his game, his performance for Ange Postecoglou’s side against Real Madrid proved that he can already cut it at the very top level, and that his rapid rise over the past year will eventually lead him back south of the border. “I could definitely see that,” Sorensen said. “Look at the steps he has been taking here and with Celtic, and also in the last six months with MK Dons. “When you are a young player that makes such a huge leap in one year - while it won’t always go like that - I thin...

A fortnight after being injured away to Shakhtar Donetsk, Cameron Carter-Vickers is reported to be a major doubt for Saturday’s match against Motherwell. The defender missed his first SPFL match of 2022 when he sat out the 2-0 defeat away to St Mirren, forcing him out of international duty with the USA. Carter-Vickers and Carl Starfelt played every minute of Celtic’s 18 SPFL matches from the turn of the year but were both injured for the match in Paisley. The well connected David Friel of The Sun reports: CELTIC are facing mounting injury problems ahead of Saturday’s Premiership clash with Motherwell. SunSport understands Cameron Carter-Vickers remains a major doubt after missing the 2-0 defeat to St Mirren ten days ago. The visit of Motherwell isn’t likely to be too demanding of the Celtic defence but Wednesday’s match away to RB Leipzig and the reverse fixture seven days later will be entirely different challenges. After taking Carter-Vickers on loan last August An...

Could Florian Wirtz be ready for the World Cup? According to a report from Sport Bild (as captured by @iMiaSanMia), former Bayern Munich manager and current Germany boss Hansi Flick could still include Bayer Leverkusen ace Florian Wirtz in his squad for the World Cup in Qatar: Hansi Flick could still take Florian Wirtz to the World Cup if he’s physically fit and has Bundesliga minutes in his legs. The coach is in close contact with Wirtz, motivating him but without putting pressure on him. Return in team training expected mid October. Wirtz’s comeback from an ACL surgery appears be on schedule as he recently started working with the ball again at Leverkusen. Still, an injury of this magnitude is nothing to be trifled with. The physical and mental recovery can take much longer than simply being cleared by a doctor. The old adage goes that you don’t really feel 100% until the second year after an ACL tear. Some players never get fully back physically or mentally. Hopefully Wirtz will tak...

The Real Madrid future of Marco Asensio is up in the air. The winger is doing a good job for Spain at the moment but his performances for the club have not been good enough to win him a regular starting berth. As a result, he is an impact substitute at best right now. And his current deal runs out at the end of this season. Thus, it is an interesting situation to say the least. Would Asensio want to stay and continue to play a reduced role? And would Real Madrid even want to keep him considering the fact that he has failed to fulfil his potential? As a result, a move away for Asensio next summer, or potentially in January if there is interest, sounds like the logical step for both parties involved. And Real Madrid already have a replacement in sight. As reported by El Espanol, Real Madrid are considering Brahim Diaz as a potential replacement for Asensio in 2023. Real Madrid already have a replacement for Asensio in sight Brahim is currently on loan at AC Milan, where he won the Serie ...

Wolverhampton Wanderers made a few statement signings during the summer transfer window. Bruno Lage brought in Matheus Nunes from Sporting Lisbon and Goncalo Guedes from Valencia in order to rejuvenate his team, although it hasn’t quite worked out so far. The Old Gold have won just one Premier League match from their opening seven games, with Lage struggling to build any sort of momentum. It might have been different if the Portuguese manager had moved quicker to land an Argentinian talent during the transfer window, however… Wolves could have landed Moutinho upgrade The Molineux side were heavily linked with a move for Enzo Fernandez throughout the window but he eventually moved to Benfica for a fee of €10m (£9m) and the move is already beginning to look like a bargain. The midfielder has started in all of Benfica’s 13 matches so far this season, which have produced 13 victories and he is asserting his dominance already. The 21-year-old has even netted three times for the club and was...

Marco van Basten says it is ‘weird’ how little Virgil van Dijk ‘takes the initiative’ in defence for Netherlands, accusing the Liverpool star of doing very little when the side are playing out from the back. Louis van Gaal’s side are enjoying a great run of results ahead of the World Cup, having not suffered defeat in any of their last 15 matches. Over the current international break they beat Poland away and Belgium at home, sending them to Qatar in confident mood as they take on Senegal, Ecuador and the host nation in their group. However, the iconic former Netherlands striker is not too impressed with Van Dijk, who he believes is the best defender the team has, but does not contribute enough to the well-established Dutch style of play. Van Basten is a big fan of Ajax defender Jurrien Timber, though, believing the 21-year-old contributes a lot more than his older teammate. ‘Jurrien Timber is our biggest strength in defense,’ said Van Basten. ‘He always takes the initiative just like ...

MANCHESTER UNITED are expected to give Erik ten Hag more transfer backing in the coming months and years. Back in the summer, Manchester United set their sights on a deal for Jurrien Timber. Ultimately they missed out, with Ajax refusing to sell and the player reluctant to make the move to Old Trafford. However, after keeping Eden Hazard and Robert Lewandowski quiet over the international break, the Red Devils reigniting their interest further down the line can’t be ruled out… Manchester United had a productive transfer window, despite a slow start. Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Antony and Martin Dubravka all moved to Old Trafford, bolstering the Red Devils’ squad in the process. However, United didn’t get all of their top targets - in what has become a similar story in the years since Sir Alex Ferguson walked away. Frenkie de Jong evaded them, with the Barcelona star refusing to make the move to the Premier League due to his determination to stay in C...

Holland held firm under heavy pressure from Belgium before scoring late on to finish runaway winners of group 4 in the UEFA Nations League after a tense 1-0 victory in Ajax. Virgil van Dijk sealed an unbeaten Nations League campaign at the Amsterdam Arena for the Dutch with an authoritative header from a corner in the 73rd minute.  They finished with 16 points, six more than Belgium who had a chance to leapfrog their neighbours, and take first place, but needed to win by three goals or more on Sunday to do so. The Holland captain climbed highest from a corner to score his sixth goal for his country Any hopes of a goal feast were quickly stymied, however, as the two sides effectively cancelled each other out in a tight tactical battle. With possession almost equally divided between the sides (45% - 55%), the visitors had the better chances to break the deadlock, although they were ultimately unable to convert.  However, despite taking a while to work their way into the gam...

Manchester Evening News 18 minutes ago Ricky Charlesworth The Manchester United star suffered a nasty-looking whack to the face during his country's 4-0 win over the Czech Republic Cristiano Ronaldo has been pictured sporting a black eye following a collision whilst on international duty. The Manchester United star sustained a nasty-looking face injury that required treatment while playing for Portugal in their Nations League meeting with the Czech Republic on Saturday. The 37-year-old, who has been restricted to mostly substitute appearances this season for United, received a bloody nose just 13 minutes into the contest when he collided with home goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik. Ronaldo was chasing a ball played over the top of the defence, which Vaclik came out to claim. The pair ran into each other, Vaclik’s arms thudding into the nose of Ronaldo. Play stopped for a little while as Ronaldo received medical treatment. He managed to complete the game, providing an assist in a comfortable ...

Dimitar Berbatov is one of the classiest centre-forwards I have seen play for Manchester United. The touch and skill that made his play seem effortless was nothing less than sheer joy to experience, and it made it much better than he turned down Manchester City to move to Old Trafford. With no Premier League football this weekend, it was time for some Legends to grab the headlines. Liverpool Legends hosted Manchester United Legends at Anfield. MUTV promised to show the game live but failed to do so and sadly the game finished 2-1 in Liverpool’s favour. However, United scored the first goal through Dimitar Berbatov, who expertly sent the ball past Jerzy Dudek and into the net. Michael Carrick played a cross-field pass to Danny Pugh before Berbatov lashed a half volley into the top corner from 15 yards. View this post on Instagram Berbatov never lost his touch of class!

Both Chelsea and Manchester City were in desperate need of a win at Kingsmeadow today. The two main contenders for the Women’s Super League title came out of their respective debuts with disappointing results, losing to Liverpool and Aston Villa respectively and letting Arsenal and Manchester United set the (early) pace to the title race. The home side started out swinging, with striker Sam Kerr finishing the game’s first scoring chance off target. City answered almost immediately with Bunny Shaw, who would prove to be one of City’s most troublesome players for the Blues’ defence. A bit of back and forth between the two sides in the first few minutes, turned into City dominating the affair but with not many great chances to score. It was still a worrying sight given Chelsea’s failure to beat a presumably weaker side last weekend, as players remained out of sync with each other and with themselves at times. Ann-Katrin Berger, returning to goalkeeping duty following a health issue, had t...

The England midfielder has been linked with a move to the Premier League but Chelsea are likely to have to battle Manchester United and Liverpool if they to sign him from Borussia Dortmund in the future Jude Bellingham hasn't given much away as to where he will end up next as Chelsea's interest has been confirmed amid £150million transfer battle. The England international looks highly likely to be travelling to Qatar for this year's FIFA World Cup and his most recent outing against Manchester City in the Champions League would no doubt have been watched and analysed by national team manager Gareth Southgate. Birmingham City's finest is expected to gain more minutes under his belt in the upcoming Nations League fixtures against Italy on Friday evening and then Germany the following Monday as he faces stern competition from the likes of Declan Rice and others. As for his club football, the future of the 19-year-old remains uncertain, with Borussia Dortmund likely to cash ...

Chelsea are in the middle of a really fascinating period of just one game in a month, meaning new manager Graham Potter will have an exceptional amount of time on the training pitch with the group. Chelsea’s “Unseen Extra” shows them having a laugh and playing football tennis this week. We’re sure there are other drills on the agenda… Interestingly, this clip is less than two minutes long. Usually they’re 7 or 8 minutes. Could it be that Potter is working on something he doesn’t want the fans to know about? You can see the full session in the clip embedded here:

Manchester United vs Leeds will be rearranged but two Premier League matches took place on Friday night and five more are are taking place over Saturday and Sunday. The Premier League returns this weekend after the last round of fixtures was postponed following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, but Manchester United's match against Leeds United, slated for Sunday, has been postponed. A number of other games have also been postponed, with Brighton vs Crystal Palace called off as a result of planned industrial action on the rail network, while Chelsea vs Liverpool is off on Sunday due to the royal funeral taking place on Monday. However, Brentford vs Arsenal - taking place at the Gtech Community Stadium in London on Sunday - is still going ahead. With Brentford vs Arsenal taking place on the same day as the two other postponed fixtures, many people expected the game to be postponed - especially with it taking place in the capital. However, that has not proved to be the case. Why is Un...