Latest news with #Amad
New York Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Where Manchester United's pursuit of Benjamin Sesko leaves Rasmus Hojlund
Hours after it emerged that Manchester United are prioritising Benjamin Sesko if they sign a striker this summer, Rasmus Hojlund came out fighting. The Denmark international started up front for the second time on United's tour to the U.S. and scored twice against Bournemouth in Chicago, a demonstration of defiance to the idea that his days at the club may be numbered. Advertisement Not that the Soldier Field stadium announcer gave Hojlund credit for his second goal on 53 minutes, though. Amad's shot, as he ran into the box, brushed off Hojlund's shins, with the ball taking a telling deflection into the far corner. Amad jogged off celebrating by the corner flag, and Hojlund followed, intimating he had moved his legs to apply a deliberate touch. Hojlund certainly looked aggrieved to hear Amad's name rather than his booming out over the speakers, with Mason Mount pointing his direction for the benefit of the crowd, and that desire for recognition is a sign of his current predicament. The striker's prospects of leaving United would be increased if Sesko does arrive from RB Leipzig — although there are expected to be many rounds of negotiations ahead — but while he wears the No 9 shirt Hojlund has a chance to affect the future. His display in the 2-1 victory against West Ham in New York gave cause for consideration at United. He performed reasonably well against Graham Potter's side, certainly looking sharp and strong in his early burst past Max Kilman which ended with a shot against the post. He was better in the 4-1 win against Bournemouth, scoring after eight minutes and linking moves with good frequency. He found an excellent position to meet Patrick Dorgu's inswinging cross and while the ball may have glanced off his shoulder rather than his head, the fact it nestled in the far corner was all that mattered. Hojlund enjoyed his celebrations, pumping his fists towards the crowd. Hojlund also showed quality in his build-up play. In one move his lay-off to Casemiro was crisp and he set off fast to run beyond the Bournemouth backline, appealing for a pass from Mount but the midfielder's ball was too far ahead of him. He had a nice touch and turn to free Diogo Dalot down right, and held his run smartly as Amad advanced, then shifted his body to draw a foul from Marcos Senesi following an underhit pass. Advertisement He was also animated, telling Dorgu he wanted the ball played into him down the right as he moved into the area. Dorgu instead held on to possession and won a free-kick. The day before, Hojlund had cut a more subdued character during a community appearance at a Chicago Fire facility in the north of the city. He smiled and chatted to children as he played barefoot football alongside Luke Shaw, but in the quieter moments he did not seem his usual ebullient self. Ruben Amorim praised Hojlund after the Bournemouth game but gave no assurances over his status at United. 'I am really happy with Rasmus,' said United's head coach. 'I don't know what is going to happen until the end of the market. The important thing is that the strikers that are here are working really well, are improving, are helping the team.' Amorim was asked whether he could say anything on Sesko. 'No,' he said. 'The important thing is that Rasmus is scoring goals, he's connecting really well with the team.' Hojlund went on record at the start of the summer saying he wished to stay at Old Trafford. 'I have a contract until 2030, so I expect to play for Manchester United,' the 22-year-old said. 'I'm looking forward to going on a summer vacation, and then I'm fully dedicated to the project that's underway.' One major aspect of that project, however, is the pursuit of a new striker, with Sesko the chosen option. United executives are now seeing if a deal can be struck with RB Leipzig and the player himself. An agreement is far from a foregone conclusion though, with Leipzig wanting a fee of €75million plus add-ons as well as a sell-on percentage for any deal for Sesko. United appreciate negotiations may take time and there is no guarantee of a resolution. For Hojlund, this all invites a fresh review of his circumstances. He and Sesko are both 22, an age when regular games are essential — but each of them getting that in Amorim's system is implausible. Were he to arrive, Sesko would, as the new signing, expect to be starting each week if fit. Advertisement But, as yet, Hojlund has not been told directly he is up for sale. He may have suspicions given United's approach in the market but that is not enough to alter his mindset at present. Should United make it clear to him that he needs to leave, that could change. Inter held concrete interest in Hojlund but the Serie A side moved on to Ange-Yoan Bonny, a 21-year-old signed for €26million from Parma. Sesko's Leipzig are among several clubs looking at him now. That has raised the prospect of some kind of swap deal for Sesko, with United also paying money to the German club given the disparity in the players' valuations. Hojlund was signed in a potential £72m deal from Atalanta in 2023 but United acknowledge internally they might now have to accept lower than his book value, which stands at a little under £45m. Borussia Dortmund are also tracking Hojlund, while Newcastle are in the market for a striker, possibly two, depending on the talks around Alexander Isak. It is not impossible that United can raise the finances for Sesko without Hojlund leaving, given they could ye recoup significant fees on Alejandro Garnacho and Antony. United could agree the Sesko deal before selling players, so long as they happen before next year's PSR deadline. At the moment Chelsea are holding tight on Garnacho, offering trades on players they no longer need, including Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku. Amid the uncertainty on that, Hojlund has not instructed his agents SEG to actively engage on a transfer away from Old Trafford. SEG, led by Kees Vos and Kees Ploegsma, have given an insight into their thinking on these types of situations during a roundtable discussion on YouTube, which also included their client Erik ten Hag. In the first episode of Villa SEG, Robin van Persie opened up on his desire to play for Barcelona around the time that he left United and joined Fenerbahce in 2015. Advertisement 'Even if a club had a view that was different to what I'd like, I wanted to hear it,' said Van Persie. 'So Kees also brought the less good news, like, 'This club doesn't think you're that good.' I wanted to hear that so I could make a choice based on all this info. 'I always had a desire to play for Barca at some point. Kees said there was talk, I was an option, but called and said, 'It's not going to happen.'' Vos said: 'It's all about timing. Had he waited a little bit longer instead of moving to Fenerbahce, he would have been an option, because he'd have moved from United. Then you come in at Barca differently than when you've moved from Fenerbahce and some doubts arise about how fit you are. 'It's a whole process, you discuss all the positives and negatives together, and then make certain choices. At some point, you have to do something, and it's either stay or go.' These will be the kind of conversations ahead for Hojlund should United make the picture clear. ()
Economic Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- Economic Times
Amorim shocks fans with bold lineup to face the Hammers
Amorim's lineup will shock you as he prepares for West Ham After a 0-0 stalemate with Leeds United in Stockholm last weekend, the Reds are hoping to start the US leg of Tour 2025 presented by Snapdragon on a high note. The match at MetLife Stadium, which begins at 0:00 BST and is broadcast live on MUTV to viewers outside of the United States, will not feature our head coach's new kid Bryan Mbeumo. Being earlier in his preseason preparations than the rest of the team and not yet ready to play a game, the Brentford acquisition is being eased into life with the Matheus Cunha, another one of our attractive recruits, makes a fresh both players might easily move places at some point, Bruno Fernandes appears destined to play in an advanced role while Kobbie Mainoo plays deeper. Harry Maguire joins the travelling squad and starts on the bench, while Amad plays wing-back.A knock causes Noussair Mazraoui to miss out. THE TEAMSUnited: Hojlund; Fernandes (c), Cunha; Amad, Mainoo, Ugarte, Dorgu; Yoro, De Ligt, Heaven; Dalot, Leon, Maguire, Munro, Shaw, Casemiro, Collyer, J. Fletcher, Kone, Mount, Mantato, Obi, and Williams are the Soucek, Rodriguez; Bowen, Fullkrug; Wan-Bissaka, Torino, Kilman, Aguerd, Diouf; West Ham: Areola. Foderingham, Cornet, Walker-Peters, Guilherme, Paqueta, Scarles, Potts, Irving, Casey, Marshall, Kante, Golambeckis, Orford, and Fearon are some of the replacements.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Amorim shocks fans with bold lineup to face the Hammers
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel After a 0-0 stalemate with Leeds United in Stockholm last weekend, the Reds are hoping to start the US leg of Tour 2025 presented by Snapdragon on a high match at MetLife Stadium , which begins at 0:00 BST and is broadcast live on MUTV to viewers outside of the United States, will not feature our head coach's new kid Bryan earlier in his preseason preparations than the rest of the team and not yet ready to play a game, the Brentford acquisition is being eased into life with the Matheus Cunha, another one of our attractive recruits, makes a fresh both players might easily move places at some point, Bruno Fernandes appears destined to play in an advanced role while Kobbie Mainoo plays Maguire joins the travelling squad and starts on the bench, while Amad plays wing-back.A knock causes Noussair Mazraoui to miss TEAMSUnited: Hojlund; Fernandes (c), Cunha; Amad, Mainoo, Ugarte, Dorgu; Yoro, De Ligt, Heaven; Dalot, Leon, Maguire, Munro, Shaw, Casemiro, Collyer, J. Fletcher, Kone, Mount, Mantato, Obi, and Williams are the Soucek, Rodriguez; Bowen, Fullkrug; Wan-Bissaka, Torino, Kilman, Aguerd, Diouf; West Ham: Cornet, Walker-Peters, Guilherme, Paqueta, Scarles, Potts, Irving, Casey, Marshall, Kante, Golambeckis, Orford, and Fearon are some of the replacements.
Daily Mirror
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Amad reveals Man Utd season goal as he sends warning to Red Devils fans
Manchester United winger Amad has give his thoughts on the upcoming campaign and backed manager Ruben Amorim to be a success, despite their struggles last season Manchester United star Amad has urged fans to be "patient" and claimed that a top five finish would be a "good season" for the Red Devils. United are looking to bounce back form their worst ever Premier League campaign last season. They finished 15th in the league and missed out on a spot in the Champions League after losing 1-0 to Tottenham in the Europa League final. However, Amad remains confident that United will "win a lot" under Ruben Amorim. "I think they have to be patient with us," the winger said. "There's a new manager, with new players and new tactics. We know last season wasn't really good for the team, but I think this season we will win a lot with him (Amorim). "And I hope this season that we are going to achieve a lot of good things by the end of the season. A good season will be top five. I hope we can achieve top five at the end of the season." Amad also gave his thoughts on United's transfer business so far, with Matheus Cunha having joined from Wolves and Bryan Mbeumo also set to make the move to Old Trafford. "He's a good player," Amad said of Cunha. "We need good players in the team and he'll bring a lot to the team. I hope he can give us some different things. Especially last season, we missed a lot of good players in the final third. He scored a lot of goals last season, so I just wish him all the best." And when asked about Mbeumo, he added: "Of course I'm looking forward to playing with him. We need good players in the team who can bring something to the final third. We are really excited to have them in the team and I hope that together we can give something to the fans at the end of the season because they deserve it." United drew 0-0 with Leeds in their first pre-season friendly on Saturday and Amorim admitted that his side were off the pace. "It was a pre-season game. The gaps between our sectors was sometimes too big," he said. "We have a lack of pace, especially in the middle of the park and you can feel it is hard to win and bring the ball. But we created chances. I think Matheus Cunha showed what we need. That he is a player when he receives the ball between the lines can be really aggressive in the direction of the opponents. "We watched that during last season in a different team so we expect the same thing. Of course you can see the connection between him and Bruno is still not there but it's going to be a good connection."
New York Times
20-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Manchester United would have ‘good season' with top-five Premier League finish
Amad believes that a top-five finish in the Premier League would represent a good 2025-26 season for Manchester United. United recorded a 15th-place finish in 2024-25, their lowest since they were relegated from the top division in 1974, although they did reach the Europa League final — losing 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Ruben Amorim's side will not be playing in European football this season as a result. Advertisement Fifth place would also have been enough to qualify United for the Champions League in 2025-26, due to the Premier League's superior UEFA coefficient in 2024-25 securing it an extra spot for next term. This summer, United have added Matheus Cunha and Diego Leon as first-team squad arrivals, with an agreement in place to sign Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford. 'A good season will be top five,' Amad said after United's goalless draw against Leeds United on Saturday, the club's first pre-season match. 'I hope we can achieve that top five at the end of the season because I think we would deserve it. 'I think the fans have to be patient with us. There's a new manager, with new players and new tactics, so we know last season wasn't really good for the team. 'But I think this season we will win a lot with him and I hope we are going to achieve a lot of good things by the end of the season.' United's pre-season continues with their Premier League Series tour of the United States with matches against West Ham United, Bournemouth and Everton between July 27 and August 3, before playing Fiorentina on August 9. ()
