Latest news with #AaronWan-Bissaka
Scottish Sun
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
Incredible XI of Man Utd misfits and deadwood that would still beat Ruben Amorim's flops on current form
MANCHESTER UNITED are enduring their worst domestic campaign in the modern history of the club. But while their squad of strugglers are languishing in 16th in the Premier League, there's a squad's worth of stars shining elsewhere. 8 Manchester United are enduring their worst domestic campaign in memory Credit: EPA In recent seasons it's felt like the key to success for Man Utd players has been leaving Man Utd, with so many stars that have exited Old Trafford going on to impress elsewhere. Aaron Wan-Bissaka showed what a United farewell can do for you on Sunday when he played a huge role in both goals against his former club as West Ham leapfrogged the Red Devils with a 2-0 victory. And he's not the only one that has been excelling elsewhere. In fact, you could make an entire starting XI of players who have swapped Man Utd for greener pastures. READ MORE ON MAN UTD BURGER ALL Man Utd to hold BBQ & no bus parade if they win Europa League final vs Spurs Crystal Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson left Man Utd in search of first team minutes in 2023, now he's The Eagle's first choice goalkeeper and about to play in an FA Cup final. Meanwhile United have been riddled with issues in between the sticks as Andre Onana continues to struggle since his £47m arrival from Inter Milan. At full-back, the misfit XI could boast West Ham's Player of the Season Wan Bissaka and January exit Tyrell Malacia. Malacia joined PSV on loan in the winter window and has jumped from a 16th place United team to a side in a title race, with Eindhoven just one point behind league leaders Ajax in the Eredivisie. 8 Aaron Wan-Bissaka has impressed with West Ham since leaving Man Utd Credit: AFP Amorim and Ratcliffe's reputations have been minced by a rotten, stinking Man Utd SunSport's Dave Kidd has his say on the dire situation at Manchester United… THEY brought in the second-richest man in Great Britain and the hottest young coach in Europe. And yet, as the fans mourned the 20th anniversary of the Glazer family's takeover yesterday, Manchester United are worse than ever. This ruthlessly brilliant businessman, this local-boy-made-good, was going to lead the Red Devils back to the place he once held in the Forbes Rich List. Now Ratcliffe's ruthlessness is regarded as hateful penny-pinching, that business acumen has not translated into football — and United are two places above the relegation zone. This rotten, stinking football club minces the reputations of the best of men. As Amorim seems to have realised, according to his extraordinary round of media interviews in the wake of Sunday's 2-0 home defeat by West Ham... Read the article in full HERE Join SUN CLUB for the Man Utd Files every Thursday plus in-depth coverage and exclusives from Old Trafford Villarreal centre-back duo Eric Bailly and Willy Kambwala would make up the rest of the back line, with the pair on the brink of earning Champions League football with the La Liga club this season. The heart of the midfield would be occupied by the un-affectionately nicknamed 'McFred' - a pair that were mocked during their time at Old Trafford. Harry Maguire gets over Man Utd woes with trip to watch former club in Championship play-off clash Now Brazilian Fred is flying high in the Turkish league at Fenerbahce under the management of Jose Mourinho, where with five league goals this season, he has scored more than United front man Rasmus Hojlund. As for McTominay - he has been a revelation at Napoli under Antonio Conte. Napoli are leading Serie A with two games remaining and McTominay has racked up 11 league goals and four assists at the heart of their midfield. Wingers Antony and Anthony Elanga would offer width in the makeshift XI given their success away from the Theatre of Dreams this season. Elanga has been one of Nottingham Forest's most important players as they've made a push for Champions League football - and he even netted against Man Utd last month. While £82m 'flop' Antony is looking a lot closer to matching his price tag with Real Betis in Spain. Since being loaned out in January, a move that many Betis fans are hoping is made permanent, Antony had weighed in with crucial goals as Manuel Pellegrini's side battle for a place in the Champions League places. 8 Scott McTominay has been a revelation for Napoli Credit: Getty 8 Antony has excelled at Real Betis Credit: Getty A front two could be made up of two of United's very own academy products. Marcus Rashford has been a man transformed at Aston Villa - before his hamstring injury - and has made the decision to loan him out look baffling. Rashford has racked up 10 goal contributions in 17 appearances for the Villans, doing so in a Champions League quarter-final and huge clashes with Manchester City and Chelsea. Partnering Rashford would be Mason Greenwood, who has reignited his career in France with Marseille. Only Ousmane Dembele has scored more goals than Greenwood in Ligue 1 this season, with the one-time England international finding the back of the net 19 times. While his goals haven't been in vain either, helping Marseille secure a return to the Champions League next season. 8 Mason Greenwood is Ligue 1's second top scorer this season Credit: AFP 8 Marcus Rashford looked more like his usual self at Aston Villa Credit: Rex 8 It appears that Manchester United have become a vast footballer recycling centre which buys good players and makes them bad, before selling bad players who become good again. Even Ruben Amorim seems to be confused as to why things aren't clicking for his side, claiming that it's not the players' fault. Seemingly threatening to quit if he can't turn it around, Amorim said: "I don't want to talk about the players. I'm talking about myself and the culture in the club and the culture in the team. I have that feeling. 'We need to change that and we need to be really strong in the summer and to be brave. "Because we cannot have a season like this next year. If the feeling is still here, we should give the space to different persons. "So it's a big problem that we have here at the club. It's a decisive moment in the history of the club. We need to address that."
The Star
09-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-West Ham's Wan-Bissaka called up to play for DR Congo
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - West Ham United v Leicester City - London Stadium, London, Britain - February 27, 2025 West Ham United's Aaron Wan-Bissaka in action REUTERS/Ian Walton/File Photo (Reuters) -West Ham United's English-born right back Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been named in a 26-man squad by Democratic Republic of Congo for friendlies in June, setting him up for a possible trip to the next Africa Cup of Nations and potentially the 2026 World Cup. The 27-year-old Wan-Bissaka had turned down previous approaches from the Congolese to play for them, notably ahead of last year's Cup of Nations finals in the Ivory Coast. His family hails from DR Congo but he has played for England at under-21 level and earned a first senior England call-up at the start of the 2019-20 season, having made an impressive start with Manchester United following a move from Crystal Palace. However, he had to withdraw from the England squad through injury and never got called up again. Wan-Bissaka, who joined Premier League side West Ham last year, would have to switch international allegiance to play for the Congolese but FIFA's latest list of players who have been allowed to make nationality changes does not include him. DR Congo, under coach Sebastien Desabre, are using the two friendly matches in Orleans, France against Mali on June 5 and Madagascar three days later to prepare for the resumption of the World Cup qualifiers, where they lead Senegal by a point at the top of Group B and host them in a key match in September. The winners of each group qualify directly for the finals. DR Congo will also compete at the Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco at the end of the year, drawn in the same group with Benin, Botswana and Senegal. (Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Ken Ferris)
Straits Times
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
West Ham's Wan-Bissaka called up to play for DR Congo
West Ham United's English-born right back Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been named in a 26-man squad by Democratic Republic of Congo for friendlies in June, setting him up for a possible trip to the next Africa Cup of Nations and potentially the 2026 World Cup. The 27-year-old Wan-Bissaka had turned down previous approaches from the Congolese to play for them, notably ahead of last year's Cup of Nations finals in the Ivory Coast. His family hails from DR Congo but he has played for England at under-21 level and earned a first senior England call-up at the start of the 2019-20 season, having made an impressive start with Manchester United following a move from Crystal Palace. However, he had to withdraw from the England squad through injury and never got called up again. Wan-Bissaka, who joined Premier League side West Ham last year, would have to switch international allegiance to play for the Congolese but FIFA's latest list of players who have been allowed to make nationality changes does not include him. DR Congo, under coach Sebastien Desabre, are using the two friendly matches in Orleans, France against Mali on June 5 and Madagascar three days later to prepare for the resumption of the World Cup qualifiers, where they lead Senegal by a point at the top of Group B and host them in a key match in September. The winners of each group qualify directly for the finals. DR Congo will also compete at the Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco at the end of the year, drawn in the same group with Benin, Botswana and Senegal. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Forbes
15-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Private Equity Firm Velocity Capital Is Investing More Than $100 Million In A European Soccer Agency
On the Ball: Velocity Capital Management is acquiring a stake in Unique Sports Group, whose client roster of more than 350 soccer players includes West Ham United's Aaron Wan-Bissaka. Since major sports leagues opened their doors to institutional investors, a wave of private equity firms has flooded in to capture outsized returns that have often dwarfed the S&P 500's. In the last year alone, Ares Management purchased a piece of the Miami Dolphins, Arctos Partners invested in the Buffalo Bills, and Sixth Street agreed to provide $1 billion toward the record-setting $6.1 billion sale of the Boston Celtics. But buying up stakes in teams isn't the only way to realize the upside of the sports industry, and Velocity Capital Management is looking at a different kind of opportunity. On Tuesday, the New York-based middle-market private equity firm will announce that it has agreed to make a strategic investment in Unique Sports Group, a soccer talent agency headquartered in London. Velocity is committing more than $100 million to the deal, a person with knowledge of the transaction tells Forbes. The agency, which represents more than 350 soccer players, including West Ham United defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Tottenham Hotspur forward Brennan Johnson and Arsenal midfielder Ethan Nwaneri, will use the capital to fuel its growth strategy, by making acquisitions, expanding into new territories and opening additional lines of business, such as entering women's sports. 'The type of business that Unique has is exactly the type of company that we like to invest in because it is providing a vital service,' says David Abrams, Velocity's managing partner. 'They're providing a vital service to teams in an industry that we think has tremendous tailwinds.' Unique will mark the sixth—and largest—investment to date for Velocity, which launched in 2022 and is aiming to raise $500 million for its debut fund. (According to a public filing from February, it currently has $256 million under management.) Rather than picking up passive minority stakes in pro teams, as some of its competitors have done, Velocity focuses on playing an active role in adjacent and complementary businesses in sports, media and entertainment, chasing traditional private equity returns in the 25% range for investors. Led by Abrams, who previously served as chief investment officer at Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, and Arne Rees, former CEO of data firm Sportradar U.S., Velocity has stakes in sports consulting firm Elevate, racing series operator Parella Motorsports, content monetization platform Videocites, experiential retailer Camp and the X Games. Its latest deal comes at a time of mass consolidation in talent representation, with major players such as CAA, WME, Excel Sports Management and Wasserman gobbling up numerous smaller competitors over the past few years. In some cases, the spending sprees have had private equity backers: TPG invested in CAA in 2010 before exiting in 2023, for instance, and Shamrock Capital took a minority stake in Excel in 2020. Unique CEO Will Salthouse knows his agency might have been a tempting target for one of those juggernauts but sees the firm fighting against the trend by staying independent—an attainable future with Velocity's support. 'Adding verticals that can go and compete with [bigger agencies], that's my vision,' Salthouse says, 'and that's always been my vision from starting this business 18 years ago.' Abrams believes Velocity's cross-pollinating portfolio can aid that pursuit. For example, Elevate, which drives commercial opportunities for brands, teams and leagues, could steer club owners toward Unique when they're looking to upgrade on the field, and Videocites' platform can help the agency's athlete clients monetize their content. Abrams points to Endeavor—the holding company behind WME, which recently went private under Silver Lake after spinning off its investments in UFC and WWE—as a possible roadmap, with the powerhouse agency having started in talent representation and later diversified its business through acquisitions of other companies and intellectual property. Unique Sports Group CEO Will Salthouse, front left, and Velocity Capital Management managing partner David Abrams, front right. 'I think you will have more potential exit paths than ever before,' Abrams says. "So from an investment perspective, we think there's more options for exit than just one or two big agencies that might want to consolidate us.' In the meantime, Abrams is excited about one lever Unique is already pulling to offset the low-margin, resource-intensive nature of talent representation: the transfer market. Whereas agents in baseball, basketball, hockey and American football can make money only off the contracts they negotiate for clients—with their fees capped at 3% for on-field deals in the NFL, for instance, and 4% in the NBA—soccer agents also broker arrangements between clubs to buy and sell players. One industry insider tells Forbes that representatives in the sport can collect roughly 10% from selling clubs in transfers, on top of commissions of up to 6% on playing wages. While Salthouse says that contract terms can vary and that there's 'no standard amount' of commission on these deals, Unique's negotiation of forward Jhon Durán's $83 million move last year from the Premier League's Aston Villa to Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr demonstrates the upside that agencies operating in other sports simply can't tap. Abrams only expects the money flowing through soccer to increase as the Premier League continues its financial growth. The league's commercial and broadcast revenue is rising 17%, to $15.3 billion, for the 2025 to 2029 cycle, according to news site SportsPro, and that uptick could trickle back to transfer fees and player wages given that, under UEFA's Financial Fair Play Regulations, the amount that clubs are allowed to spend is directly tied to how much revenue they generate. At the same time, however, other leagues across Europe are not necessarily matching that upward trajectory, with media rights payments flattening in recent years. 'I don't get concerned that media rights will level off because our experience has been with that intellectual property, even in a global financial crisis, it's not dropping by 50%,' Abrams says. 'So there is a lot of stability in the value of it.' And reliability is especially attractive in the current economic environment. The number of M&A deals has been declining since 2021, in part because of former President Joe Biden's perceived skepticism of tie-ups and the Federal Reserve's efforts to slow inflation with higher interest rates. Meanwhile, the business world's optimism that the downward trend would reverse itself under a second Trump administration has all but dissipated amid the sitting president's erratic moves and tariff policies, which have rocked public markets. But as Salthouse notes, 'there are no tariffs' on soccer, and the sports industry largely continues to charge ahead. Last year saw record M&A activity in the sector, with the deal count rising 44% to 410, according to a report from financial advisory firm Oaklins, and private equity firms nearly doubled their involvement, accounting for 190 of those transactions in 2024. 'We're not investing in teams; we're investing in these essential infrastructure businesses around the space,' Abrams says. 'So if there is a change in the world economy and recession or trade war, it doesn't really matter.'
Telegraph
11-04-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Liverpool vs West Ham United predictions: Premier League tips and odds
Our expert has three tips for Sunday's Premier League match between Liverpool and West Ham United at Anfield (2pm kick-off), including a home win. Read on for his analysis. Liverpool vs West Ham tips Liverpool to win to nil @ 5/4 with Sky Bet Alexis Mac Allister 4+ foul involvements @ 6/5 with Sky Bet Aaron Wan-Bissaka 3+ tackles @ 11/10 with Sky Bet Odds courtesy of Sky Bet. Correct at the time of publication and subject to change. If you already have a Sky Bet account and are looking for a new bookmaker to use for the midweek football action, check out our list of the best free bets. Reds will get back to business The Merseysiders lost 3-2 away at Fulham last weekend in what was only their second defeat of the season in the Premier League. They still hold an 11-point lead at the top of the table and only need a maximum of four wins to secure the title. Arne Slot will be keen for his team to reset and get back to business after that slip. Their form at Anfield suggests that this will not be a problem, with the Reds unbeaten in 13 home games in the league, of which they have won 11. Liverpool have kept clean sheets in three of their past five appearances in the top flight. The Hammers have drawn blanks in two of their previous four matches, so we are backing the hosts not to concede in victory. Midfielder both draws and commits fouls Sky Bet has a great range of options for betting on match statistics. An example is its foul involvements market, which allows you to wager on the combined total of offences against and committed by a player. A Liverpool star who stands out in this market is Alexis Mac Allister. The Argentine ranks second in Slot's squad when it comes to winning the most fouls in Premier League games. The midfielder also tops the rankings for offences committed among his teammates. With a total of 56, he is averaging 1.8 fouls per match – and we expect that number to increase in this fixture. Busy afternoon ahead for Wan-Bissaka Aaron Wan-Bissaka has enjoyed a strong season since joining West Ham last summer. He was known for his tackling ability earlier in his career at Crystal Palace and the 27-year-old has not lost this knack. He has recorded 60 tackles in the Premier League during this campaign, of which seven came in the recent 1-0 defeat at Wolves. Wan-Bissaka looks likely to be facing either Luis Diaz or Cody Gakpo on Sunday. Either way, it will be a busy afternoon for the full back and we are expecting him to be up to the task. Liverpool vs West Ham odds All odds courtesy of Sky Bet. Correct at the time of publication and subject to change.
