🚨 Bellingham wondergoal, Man Utd reaction, Newcastle midfielder links, key Arsenal contract talks, potential Chelsea exit, and more
The latest football headlines all in one place for you.
Good morning everyone and welcome to the latest edition of the Daily Briefing - read on for all today’s biggest stories and reaction to last night’s Champions League results. Thanks for reading and enjoy! :-)
Today’s top stories:
Plus more from Arsenal, Liverpool and Real Madrid
Ajax
Official: Louis van Gaal will advise the Ajax Supervisory Board on football technical matters. Club confirms that the vacant position of former Supervisory Board member Jan van Halst has now been filled.
Al Duhail
Christophe Galtier on the verge of being appointed as new Al Duhail head coach, talks at final stages with Qatari club — here we go! Hernan Crespo has been fired and the plan is now to appoint Galtier as new manager if all goes to plan.
Arsenal
Bad news for Arsenal as they lost 2-1 to Lens, with Mikel Arteta having this to say on Bukayo Saka’s injury: “It doesn’t look good. He tried to backheel a ball in the first half and he felt something. It’s something muscular. He wasn’t able to carry on. We don’t know more, but it was big enough for us to remove him.”
Fresh talks will take place soon for Ben White to discuss a new contract at Arsenal - more info here.
Which Arsenal youngster is considered “one of the best in the world” by people in the industry?
Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Piers Morgan on his decision to reject Arsenal trial when he was 17: “Wenger invited me but I didn’t go to Arsenal. I don’t do trials. No no, you don't understand... I don’t do trials. I am the best; f**k the rest.”
How can Arsenal get the best out of Kai Havertz? Insight from Ben Jacobs here.
Bayer Leverkusen
Official: Jeremie Frimpong has signed a new contract with Bayer Leverkusen until 2028, as expected.
Bayern Munich
Alphonso Davies’ agent Nick Huoseh: “There is interest from many teams. I’m sure that Real Madrid could be one of the clubs that would like to sign Davies. There are several Premier League clubs too…” - Full details here.
Borussia Dortmund
Braga
Stop what you’re doing and watch this absolutely phenomenal goal by Braga last night - goal of the season contender already? [Pictures courtesy of TNT Sports]
Brentford
Ivan Toney is back and scored for Brentford in a behind-closed-doors friendly - see his strike below [Pictures courtesy of Sky Sports News]
Chelsea
This Chelsea player has been told: sign a new deal or leave - latest info here.
Ben Chilwell is expected to miss the next two months due to a hamstring injury. He could return in December but it’s not guaranteed yet. A big blow for Mauricio Pochettino, but he and his staff also have faith in Marc Cucurella following improved performances and strong efforts in training.
Armando Broja: “No injury — just a precaution. I’ve been out for a while so it was always hard for me to come back and play the full 90 minutes. I did get a bit leggy just before I came off, so it was just a precaution.”
Inter Milan
Lautaro Martinez’s agent Alejandro Camano: “We are gonna work on new deal with Inter. He loves Inter, really. He doesn’t want to leave this great club. His relationship with everyone at Inter is excellent.”
Liverpool
The Premier League have released the full audio from Liverpool’s disallowed goal against Tottenham:
Is it time to scrap VAR? Ben Jacobs is not convinced - more here.
Manchester City
Manchester City have completed a deal to sign talented young defender Harrison Parker from rivals Manchester United. City have beaten four top clubs to the signing, it was sealed yesterday. One more top talent for Man City’s ambitious academy project.
Pep Guardiola: “Man City did a really excellent job by signing Josko Gvardiol. He’s not had time to train much with us but we're really impressed. He can play at centre-back, left-back, midfield... The impact is massive. We’re impressed with him, on and off the pitch.”
Manchester United
Erik ten Hag: “I will encourage Onana, I will back him — I will support him”. “He’s great goalkeeper. He can be one of the best in the world. We have seen already Onana’s great capabilities and also his personality. He will bounce back, I’m sure.”
See below for the Wilfried Zaha goal - should Onana have done better? [Pictures courtesy of TNT Sports]
Rasmus Hojlund: “It’s a difficult time, but we have to stay together, it’s the only way to get through it. The second goal? That’s my style, my mark. That’s a Rasmus goal.”
And what a goal this was from Hojlund, who scored twice in United’s 3-2 home defeat [Pictures courtesy of TNT Sports]
Ten Hag on Marcus Rashford’s difficult moment: “If Marcus works hard and invests every day, with the right focus and if the team around him supplies and helps him with movement, then it will come. Rashford is a guy who’s capable of scoring a goal in every single game, trust me.”
Ten Hag on Antony’s return: “We took these allegations seriously. He was absent to respond to them, he cooperated fully with the police in Brazil and here, and he was not charged, so he is available.”
Ibrahimovic on Ten Hag: “What is the experience of this coach? Young talents then he comes to United… Man United is different mentality, different players.” Full story here.
Jadon Sancho’s exit is an increasingly concrete possibility - full details here.
Ben Jacobs has the latest on Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s efforts to take over Man Utd.
Newcastle United
Agreement finally sealed between Bruno Guimaraes and Newcastle, new deal until June 2028 - more info here.
Newcastle have been linked with a top midfield talent - more info here.
Real Madrid
9 games, 8 goals as Real Madrid player for Jude Bellingham. An insane talent. What a player, and what a goal this was against Napoli last night [Pictures courtesy of TNT Sports]
Vinicius Jr reveals: “I wanted Jude at Real Madrid! I sent many messages to Bellingham last year. I was texting almost every day and I was telling him: come to Madrid.”
Could Alphonso Davies be an option for Real Madrid? More info here.
Real Madrid are closely monitoring Endrick’s progress in Brazil - full details here.
Tottenham
Shakhtar Donetsk CEO Serhii Palkin insisting on a compensation package for Manor Solomon deal with Tottenham. “We paid €6.5m and I don't believe this is huge money for a club of Tottenham’s level. No profit needed but I believe it’s possible for them to cover these losses.”
For all the very latest transfer news, read caughtoffside.com
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