Manchester United

Manchester United

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim is a big fan of Al Hilal midfielder Ruben Neves as a January transfer could be possible. As reported here for the Daily Briefing, there looks like a decent chance that Neves could move back to Europe this January for around 20m. It remains to be seen if this will definitely lead Man Utd to pursue Neves as a priority, but he's a player Ruben Amorim sees as a good fit for his squad.

It would be quite surprising if they decided to move for the 62-year-old after having sacked him in the past in 2018. The Portuguese manager has managed Manchester United before, and he guided them to the EFL Cup, the Community Shield, and the UEFA Europa League win. He is currently out of a job after being sacked by Fenerbahce in August, and it will be interesting to see if Manchester United decide to bring him back to the club.

Emery is viewed not just as a stop-gap, but as someone with a track record of turning clubs around. For example, since joining Aston Villa in October 2022, Emery has overseen a monumental rise, from battling relegation to challenging for European qualification. Villa also extended his contract to 2027 and beyond, reflecting their belief in his management style and structure.

Ratcliffe, who injected £300 million ($407.4m) of his own money into the club, said in March that United were in significant financial difficulties. "In super-simple terms, the club has been spending more money than it's been earning now for the last seven years, and it ends in a very difficult place," Ratcliffe said. "And for Manchester United, that place ended at the end of this year, the end of 2025, with the club running out of cash."

A man was pictured wearing a dark United away strip from the 2018-19 season, which prompted furious City fans to complain to the club. A City supporter contacted the club's fan support page to raise the issue, and attached a picture of the United fan behind one of the bars on the concourse. The club replied: "Thank you for making us aware of this. We can confirm that this individual has now been removed from their position."

Ugarte, meanwhile, has his limitations in possession but it's his lack of mobility that's most striking. The Uruguayan was overwhelmed by City's midfield, playing team-mates into trouble with passes that lacked purpose. United were all over the place in midfield as City ran a mock in the second half. That changed when Amorim introduced Kobbie Mainoo from the bench, but by then the result was done.

He is a top player, he's proven that at the highest level for club and country, but he's 29 now and that might be a concern for Man City about his age. He's a top player, a real attacking full-back who is probably better going forward than he is defensively, and he would be a good fit for Man City.

Bayern Munich had a tense summer transfer window. They had to face rejection from several top targets as they looked to strengthen the attack. After missing out on Florian Wirtz, Bayern huffed and puffed to get the deal for Luis Diaz over the line before the start of the season. Diaz was an expensive acquisition considering his age and contract situation at Liverpool.

It's another difficult deal, but I'm not surprised Man United have been looking at Anderson. Now that he's broken into the England squad, his profile is only going to get bigger. He was sold for 35m, and the way he's going right now, if he continues to impress for club and country in the next 12 months, you'll see his price double at least.