Wayne Rooney thanks north coast for ‘warm welcome' after visit to Curry's in Portrush with wife Coleen
Curry's Funpark in Portrush — previously known as Barry's — thanked Wayne and his equally famous wife Coleen for attending, as well as talking about the positive impact of other teams visiting for the SuperCupNI.
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Scottish Sun
4 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Why Man Utd should SCRAP Benjamin Sesko transfer for different position Ruben Amorim desperately needs
MANCHESTER UNITED chiefs are 'working around the clock' to give Ruben Amorim the tools he needs to fix the club. But as Amorim and Co landed back home on Monday after their promising US tour ended with a reality check in the Big Peach, one pressing thought dominated. Advertisement 7 Manchester United are hot on the heels of RB Leipzig hitman Benjamin Sesko Credit: GETTY 7 The Red Devils are going toe-to-toe with Prem rivals Newcastle for the 22-year-old Credit: GETTY 7 Ruben Amorim needs to strengthen other areas of his squad before signing a new striker Credit: Getty Should United chief executive Omar Berrada be prioritising a new No.9 and looking to spend £70million-plus on Benjamin Sesko? Newcastle hit Leipzig's asking price for the Slovenian frontman on Monday night and are keep to wrap up a deal as soon as possible. United now must decide whether to make their move. But the question remains, is it a proper holding midfielder that they REALLY need? Advertisement READ MORE MAN UTD NEWS SES PLEASE Benjamin Sesko 'tells both Man Utd and Newcastle he only wants them' Manuel Ugarte looked no better equipped than he did when flailing through last season, as Everton clearly targeted him in Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The £42.3m Uruguayan midfielder, 24, got criminally caught in possession for Iliman Ndiaye's goal in Sunday night's 2-2 friendly draw, was treading through treacle at times and looked all at sea for most of his 72 minutes on the pitch. And when replaced by Casemiro, who remains slower than a pedalo in choppy waters — while Kobbie Mainoo has gone backwards — it exposed glaring vulnerabilities in the centre of midfield. The attacking trident boss Amorim used for the first 45 minutes, with debutant Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Bruno Fernandes floating in and around each other, was vibrant and exciting. Advertisement SUN VEGAS WELCOME OFFER: GET £50 BONUS WHEN YOU JOIN 7 7 Central midfield remains a problem area for Manchester United, despite the relatively recent arrival of Manuel Ugarte Credit: Getty Amad Diallo, despite playing a part in Ayden Heaven's own goal that gifted the Toffees a second leveller, offered thrust and dynamism at wing-back. Yet he gave centre-back Leny Yoro scant protection. Advertisement While, Mason Mount came off the bench to curl home a delightful effort and show he can contribute. Sesko wants Man Utd move as Villa block Watkins exit | Transfers Exposed There are clearly goals in this United squad, even with seemingly-unwanted Rasmus Hojlund on the bench and Joshua Zirkzee still not fit. Mbeumo, building up fitness after a £65m move from Brentford, has pace, penetration and perception. Cunha looks a scorer of great goals, if perhaps not a great goalscorer, while skipper Bruno is at his best when looking to hurt opponents with the ball. Advertisement Replacing Hojlund with another similar style player, rather than a proven Prem striker like Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta, seems a waste of resources given their midfield shortcomings. For starters, Mateta is available at half the price of RB Leipzig man Sesko. Finding a Rodri equivalent is, of course, tough. Just ask Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola. Ugarte got criminally caught in possession for Iliman Ndiaye's goal in Sunday night's 2-2 friendly draw, was treading through treacle at times and looked all at sea for most of his 72 minutes on the pitch. But what Amorim would give for a Michael Carrick or Owen Hargreaves. Advertisement Even so, Amorim was right to highlight positives from their training camp in Chicago and games against West Ham, Bournemouth and Everton. Yet Fernandes was critical of the 'lazy' performance against the Toffees, adding: 'We need to change that. 'The situation is improving, but the culture here was winning — and we need to bring that back. 'A lot of people have suffered from this, a lot of people who had been working at the club for many years had to go. Advertisement 'Fans are paying more for tickets, so it's up to us to pay it back on the pitch.' Amorim, asked to respond, was emphatic. He said: 'I'm happy for the players to have that feeling. 7 CEO Omar Berrada should prioritise resolving the biggest issue in United's squad ahead of signing a new strike Credit: GETTY "They understand the situation. Advertisement 'We need to be really consistent. But we are better. It's the perfect feeling to go back to Carrington. 'The momentum of the tour was perfect. We had the weeks to work with a good environment, good feeling. "Then we go back to Carrington and are near to starting the season, going with the feeling that we need to do a lot of things.' Including in further recruitment — as captain Fernandes stated in his own message to the board. Advertisement The Portuguese midfielder said: 'I don't want to have a dig at anyone. 7 Skipper Bruno Fernandes has issued a transfer plea to the Manchester United brass Credit: GETTY "The club are doing the best they can in terms of all the financial situations they talk about. 'But it was crystal clear that we needed more competition — more quality to get everyone to step up a bit more. Advertisement 'That's what the club and manager are trying to do and, hopefully, we can get one or two players more to help with that.' In what will be music to Fernandes' ears, United chief Berrada revealed: 'The recruitment team is working round the clock to strengthen our squad.' Start with the biggest issue, Omar, not the most eye-catching one. Teams with a polo mint hole in the middle can never win anything.
The Sun
4 minutes ago
- The Sun
Why Man Utd should SCRAP Benjamin Sesko transfer for different position Ruben Amorim desperately needs
MANCHESTER UNITED chiefs are 'working around the clock' to give Ruben Amorim the tools he needs to fix the club. But as Amorim and Co landed back home on Monday after their promising US tour ended with a reality check in the Big Peach, one pressing thought dominated. 7 7 7 Should United chief executive Omar Berrada be prioritising a new No.9 and looking to spend £70million-plus on Benjamin Sesko? Newcastle hit Leipzig's asking price for the Slovenian frontman on Monday night and are keep to wrap up a deal as soon as possible. United now must decide whether to make their move. But the question remains, is it a proper holding midfielder that they REALLY need? Manuel Ugarte looked no better equipped than he did when flailing through last season, as Everton clearly targeted him in Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The £42.3m Uruguayan midfielder, 24, got criminally caught in possession for Iliman Ndiaye's goal in Sunday night's 2-2 friendly draw, was treading through treacle at times and looked all at sea for most of his 72 minutes on the pitch. And when replaced by Casemiro, who remains slower than a pedalo in choppy waters — while Kobbie Mainoo has gone backwards — it exposed glaring vulnerabilities in the centre of midfield. The attacking trident boss Amorim used for the first 45 minutes, with debutant Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Bruno Fernandes floating in and around each other, was vibrant and exciting. 7 7 Amad Diallo, despite playing a part in Ayden Heaven's own goal that gifted the Toffees a second leveller, offered thrust and dynamism at wing-back. Yet he gave centre-back Leny Yoro scant protection. While, Mason Mount came off the bench to curl home a delightful effort and show he can contribute. Sesko wants Man Utd move as Villa block Watkins exit | Transfers Exposed There are clearly goals in this United squad, even with seemingly-unwanted Rasmus Hojlund on the bench and Joshua Zirkzee still not fit. Mbeumo, building up fitness after a £65m move from Brentford, has pace, penetration and perception. Cunha looks a scorer of great goals, if perhaps not a great goalscorer, while skipper Bruno is at his best when looking to hurt opponents with the ball. Replacing Hojlund with another similar style player, rather than a proven Prem striker like Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta, seems a waste of resources given their midfield shortcomings. For starters, Mateta is available at half the price of RB Leipzig man Sesko. Finding a Rodri equivalent is, of course, tough. Just ask Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola. Ugarte got criminally caught in possession for Iliman Ndiaye's goal in Sunday night's 2-2 friendly draw, was treading through treacle at times and looked all at sea for most of his 72 minutes on the pitch. But what Amorim would give for a Michael Carrick or Owen Hargreaves. Even so, Amorim was right to highlight positives from their training camp in Chicago and games against West Ham, Bournemouth and Everton. Yet Fernandes was critical of the 'lazy' performance against the Toffees, adding: 'We need to change that. 'The situation is improving, but the culture here was winning — and we need to bring that back. 'A lot of people have suffered from this, a lot of people who had been working at the club for many years had to go. 'Fans are paying more for tickets, so it's up to us to pay it back on the pitch.' Amorim, asked to respond, was emphatic. He said: 'I'm happy for the players to have that feeling. 7 "They understand the situation. 'We need to be really consistent. But we are better. It's the perfect feeling to go back to Carrington. 'The momentum of the tour was perfect. We had the weeks to work with a good environment, good feeling. "Then we go back to Carrington and are near to starting the season, going with the feeling that we need to do a lot of things.' Including in further recruitment — as captain Fernandes stated in his own message to the board. The Portuguese midfielder said: 'I don't want to have a dig at anyone. 7 "The club are doing the best they can in terms of all the financial situations they talk about. 'But it was crystal clear that we needed more competition — more quality to get everyone to step up a bit more. 'That's what the club and manager are trying to do and, hopefully, we can get one or two players more to help with that.' In what will be music to Fernandes' ears, United chief Berrada revealed: 'The recruitment team is working round the clock to strengthen our squad.' Start with the biggest issue, Omar, not the most eye-catching one. Teams with a polo mint hole in the middle can never win anything.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Analyzing preseason friendlies is maddening, but right now it's all we have
Glory for Manchester United, who lifted the Premier League summer series on Sunday despite twice being pegged back by Everton to draw 2-2 in Atlanta. A degree of relief for West Ham, who beat Bournemouth to finish second in the competition despite all the gloomy prognostications about their campaign to come. In Seoul, meanwhile, there was a very Tottenham moment as they followed the glee of last week's 1-0 win over Arsenal with a 1-1 draw against Newcastle in which James Maddison was stretchered off with a knee injury described by his manager Thomas Frank as 'bad'. It all looks real, it sounds real and yet everybody knows it isn't real. That even now, in this age of data and minute analysis, there remains an element of randomness, is one of soccer's great joys as a sport. But that tendency is magnified in pre-season. The Premier League has been away for 10 weeks now. For those hooked on its soap opera, the wait is intolerable. The Club World Cup, the England men's team being dreadful in June as they so often are, the Under-21s continuing their unfamiliar excellence, even the women's Euros … none of it quite offers the same hit. Obsessing over transfers suffices only for so long; eventually there is a need to see them play. And so there are pre-season games, and there is is analysis. The best of it is skeptical, acknowledging the absurdity of making judgements on 45 minutes. The worst of it is breathlessly insistent – of Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, the two senior players United have managed to sign, appearing together against Everton. What does it mean that Rasmus Højlund was only on the bench? Does that mean Benjamin Šeško is more likely to sign? The front three, with Mbeumo dropping deep and Cunha and Bruno Fernandes at times running beyond him, looked fluent. Fernandes and Mbuemo set up Amad Diallo, overlapping from wing-back to score the opener. This is the way Ruben Amorim's 3-4-3 is supposed to work. In that, at least, there is a sense of something tangible, a United that is, at last, able to execute their manager's attacking plan. But Ayden Heaven's own goal was a reminder that United remain as self-destructive as ever. Perhaps more significant was the equaliser conceded after Manuel Ugarte lost possession, the lack of urgency to get back. Did this happen because it was only a friendly and United are nowhere near peak fitness yet? Or because this is an irredeemably feckless bunch of players? This is smoke on a foggy day. Will any of it be relevant when the season begins for real? United fans will remember ruefully just how good they looked in pre-season under Louis van Gaal in 2014, only for the season itself to prove anticlimactic. The problem with assessing pre-season games is that different sides are at different stages of readiness. Some expect to hit the ground running from week one; others are building to peak in March or April, the differences magnified two weeks before the opening day. Some managers are working on specific plans and are less bothered by the whole, some are just hoping to get semi-competitive minutes into their players' legs. Sign up to Soccer with Jonathan Wilson Jonathan Wilson brings expert analysis on the biggest stories from European soccer after newsletter promotion In the old days, before Premier League teams went on foreign tours and everybody was desperately promoting themselves to a global audience, pre-season was about team bonding as much as anything else: the team that drinks together wins together, as the adage had it. The stories are legion: the Everton winger Peter Beagrie driving a motorbike through a plateglass window in San Sebastián; Sunderland's diminutive but extremely tough full-back John Kay terrifying a much larger local who had threatened him by casually eating the antiseptic cubes from a urinal in Bristol; Arsenal's French midfielder Gilles Grimandi joining five of his English teammates on a night out in Switzerland where the first round comprised 35 pints of lager and a dry white wine. Many managers, you suspect, would quite relish a return to the days, if not of booze, then at least of pre-season being a largely private affair rather than a projection of the club to the world. Very occasionally something consequential happens, such as Chelsea conceding four in the second half to an experimental New York Red Bulls led by Jesse Marsch in the summer of 2015, the first sign that something had gone badly wrong for José Mourinho's side since winning the Premier League two months earlier; within five months, Mourinho had been sacked. (It was also the debut first-team appearance for Bournemouth and US national team midfielder Tyler Adams, then 16 years old.) Pre-season is very much the phoney war, the jockeying, the probing. It matters to the clubs, but to outsiders it is essentially like watching an artist mix his paints. There's anticipation and a vague technical interest, but it means nothing until it starts being applied to the canvas. This is an extract from Soccer with Jonathan Wilson, a weekly look from the Guardian US at the game in Europe and beyond. Subscribe for free here. Have a question for Jonathan? Email soccerwithjw@ and he'll answer the best in a future edition.
