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Man Utd giving up the best chances and Burnley the mostpublished at 09:02 BST 17 October
09:02 BST 17 October
Chris Collinson BBC Sport statistician
Image source, Getty Images
When we look at how teams are defending so far this season, Arsenal and Newcastle have been so impressive because they are giving up both the fewest shots per game and the hardest chances to score on average.
But as the graphic shows, there are two teams that stand apart from all the rest for having key defensive problems: Manchester United and Burnley.
Image source, BBC Sport
If you look simply at the number of shots that teams are giving up, Manchester United look good defensively since only Arsenal and Newcastle are facing fewer than their 9.1 per game.
But not all shots are the same and Ruben Amorim's side are currently giving up by far the easiest chances to score in the league, averaging 0.16 xG per shot faced.
Burnley meanwhile are facing by far the most shots at 18.4 per game, four more than any other side, although thankfully for them the quality of those chances is not that high.
Gossip: Man Utd set £40m Fernandes asking pricepublished at 07:04 BST 17 October
07:04 BST 17 October
Manchester United would want around £40m to allow 31-year-old captain Bruno Fernandes to leave for another European club, with Bayern Munich heavily linked with the Portugal midfielder. (Teamtalk), external
Man Utd optimistic of positive outcome over stadium landpublished at 15:14 BST 16 October
15:14 BST 16 October
Simon Stone Manchester United reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Manchester United say they are still hopeful of buying the land needed to build a new stadium – including the 'circus tent' canopy.
Talks between the club and local landowners over the site behind Old Trafford stadium which is presently used as a freight terminal are yet to reach a positive conclusion.
United have drawn up different plans but minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe still has his sights set on the grand scheme he unveiled in London last year.
The stadium situation was raised at last month's Fans Forum meeting, at which club officials attempted to calm the situation.
"While Manchester United owns a significant portion of land around Old Trafford, it is not all in a single, continuous block," the club said.
"To accommodate the scale of the proposed new stadium – including a canopy – and to avoid disruption to the existing stadium during construction, we are working to secure additional land.
"We've been engaged in constructive discussions with neighbouring landholders and are optimistic about reaching mutually agreeable terms in the coming months."
'The aura' and 'the swagger' - Cantona memoriespublished at 13:04 BST 16 October
13:04 BST 16 October
Image source, Getty Images
We asked for your favourite memories of Manchester United legend Eric Cantona after Peter Schmeichel described him as a "shy" and "different" character. You can read his words lower down this page.
Here are some of your comments:
Jon: The goals, the collar, the aura… but the pass against Spurs at Old Trafford straight into the path of Dennis Irwin was majestic.
Rod: My most vivid memory was meeting him in a bar on Deansgate. We had played and beaten Liverpool away earlier in the day and there was Eric with his manager having a drink in a tapas bar - and talk about aura! You could feel his presence from far off. I reluctantly went up to him with a scrappy piece of paper and a cheap pen and asked him for an autograph for a mate - not even myself! And without a murmur he wrote a message to my mate Craig and with that I said thanks and walked away. More than 30 years later I still remember that encounter like it was yesterday.
Jason: My first ever match watching United, 20th November 1993 for my 18th birthday. We beat Wimbledon 3-1 and watching Eric was the highlight of the day. Just pure class!
Kev: Unquestionably it has to be Cantona's 1996 FA Cup winning volley against old rivals Liverpool, as a memory that sticks out the most. But also just the aura of the man on the pitch, no one has come close since. The upturned collar, the swagger...
Gerry: I was Chairman of Strabane Nortnern Ireland United Supporters club. We had been selected to present a trophy to Eric as our favourite player. The trophy was a beautiful Waterford Crystal vase on a separate mahogany frame. Eric was delighted with the trophy but as he turned to walk back to the dressing room, he tipped up the trophy as he thought it was attached to the base, which it wasn't. The trophy fell to the floor and smashed. He was very annoyed. However, the club arranged for another trophy and at another game, we successfully delivered the trophy to him again.
Rob: I remember his presence and swagger when I saw him at Carrington after training had finished, he signed a match day programme for my sister which she lost, heartbreakingly.
Fernandes, Casemiro, Amad and Cunha absent from United trainingpublished at 13:01 BST 16 October
13:01 BST 16 October
Simon Stone Manchester United reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Bruno Fernandes, Matheus Cunha, Amad and Casemiro missed Manchester United training on Thursday morning as the quartet were given extra time off by manager Ruben Amorim.
The quartet were not pictured in this morning's session, part of which was filmed by Sky Sports.
United take on Liverpool on Sunday as they look to win back-to-back matches in the Premier League for the first time this season.
Ruben Amorim is likely to be without Noussair Mazraoui, who has missed the last two matches with what has been described as a minor injury.
The Morocco defender didn't play in his country's World Cup qualifier with Congo on Monday.
Lisandro Martinez wasn't there either but he is edging closer to a return after major knee surgery and it will be interesting to see if he makes a matchday squad before the November international break.
Shea Lacey, Jim Thwaites and Jack Fletcher were amongst the youngsters involved, while Ayden Heaven missed out after he was taken off at half-time in England's Under-20 international defeat by Switzerland last Friday.
Tell us your Cantona memoriespublished at 10:56 BST 16 October
10:56 BST 16 October
Image source, Getty Images
Manchester United great Peter Schmeichel has been reflecting on his memories of Eric Cantona at Old Trafford - which you can read below - but what are yours of the legendary striker's time at the club?
There are plenty to choose from when thinking about the player who became known as 'King Eric'.
Was it the goals that helped the team win multiple cups and titles? An iconic moment like the infamous kung-fu kick or the news conference on his return?
Maybe you had your own interaction with the Frenchman that stands out?
'He was different and that was a very good thing' - Schmeichel on Cantonapublished at 10:56 BST 16 October
10:56 BST 16 October
Image source, Getty Images
Legendary Manchester United forward Eric Cantona was a "shy guy" but also an "inspiration", according to former team-mate Peter Schmeichel.
Cantona joined the Red Devils in 1992 and made 185 appearances, scoring 82 goals, before leaving in 1997.
He played alongside ex-goalkeeper Schmeichel throughout that period and the Dane remembers the Frenchman's first day at the club well.
"He was quiet, still is very quiet. If you follow him on social media, the way he speaks is just the way he speaks. He's a fantastic guy and I enjoyed rooming with him," Schmeichel told BBC's Sacked In The Morning podcast.
"[He is] just a nice guy. He is different, and that was a very good thing. That's exactly why he became the final piece in the jigsaw because that differentness was incredibly difficult for other teams to work out back then.
"Back then, most teams, even ours, played similar systems and in similar ways. So the difference between the teams were obviously physicality and ability, and all of a sudden you have this guy.
"My god, did [Sir Alex Ferguson] get the best player ever."
Cantona's footballing prowess, unique quotes and infamous kung-fu kick all played their part in issuing him icon status at Old Trafford. Despite this outward persona, Schmeichel insists the multiple title winner was quiet off the pitch.
"Eric is a shy guy. He wasn't very vocal in the dressing room at any time," he said. "You don't really know anybody [when you arrive], and especially if you come from abroad.
"He went out to the pitch, and behind one of the goals at The Cliff [training ground] is a wall into the indoor arena.
"So he went up to that wall and just started to volley balls up against it, chest it down, left and right foot. The building at The Cliff training ground - the canteen, the treatment room, the manager's office - had windows to the pitch and everybody was watching from up there and saying: 'What is he doing? We've never seen anything like that. Why is he doing that?'.
"We loved to be at The Cliff, but it was also the pitch for youth team matches, so you had to preserve it a little bit. To go down and start training on that pitch was just unheard of.
"All of a sudden you've got people up against the wall playing, training, practicing stuff, and that never really happened.
"Eric did that. Eric gave that little bit of inspiration, and because he did it, the manager loved it and then he allowed everybody else to do it as well."
Nine Premier League players on Golden Boy shortlistpublished at 10:41 BST 16 October
10:41 BST 16 October
Image source, Getty Images
The 25-player shortlist for the Golden Boy award was revealed on Wednesday, with nine players from the Premier League selected.
The award, created by Italian newspaper Tuttosport, is given to the best under-21 footballer each year, with Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal last year's winner.
For a player to be considered for selection in 2025, they must have been born on or after 1 January 2005 and belong to a squad in one of Uefa's top 25 leagues.
Arsenal's Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri have both been selected after their breakthrough seasons in 2024-25.
Lewis-Skelly played 40 times across all competitions and also made his England senior debut, while Nwaneri appeared 37 times and scored nine goals.
Chelsea are represented twice, with summer arrivals Estevao, who scored his first goal for the club with a dramatic late winner against Liverpool before the international break, and defender Jorrel Hato making the shortlist.
Tottenham Hotspur also feature, with midfielders Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray being chosen.
Manchester United defender Leny Yoro, Manchester City full-back Nico O'Reilly and Liverpool centre half Giovanni Leoni - a wildcard choice - have also been selected.
An international jury of 50 journalists will decide the winner, which will be revealed at a news conference in November.
What expected goals tell us about the start to the Premier League seasonpublished at 09:04 BST 16 October
09:04 BST 16 October
Chris Collinson BBC Sport statistician
Image source, Getty Images
The Premier League table is starting to take shape and while results are obviously what matter most, they don't tell the whole story in terms of how teams have been playing so far.
Expected goals (xG) tells us how much teams have been dominating games by creating lots of good chances up front and restricting opponents to few, bad ones at the back.
Penalties are excluded because they distort a team's numbers on how threatening or vulnerable they are in general, especially at this early stage.
Below is a graphic showing how good teams have been in attack and defence, with the most dominant teams in the top-right corner and the least impressive in the bottom-left corner.
Arsenal and Manchester City have been the most dominant sides, with the Gunners having the best defence and fourth-best attack and City the joint-best attack and fourth-best defence.
High-flying Crystal Palace are the only side to rival City's attacking threat, while Newcastle are living up to their name by being almost as impregnable at the back as Arsenal.
Both Manchester United and Chelsea have one of the top five attacks in the league but worryingly also rank in the bottom five defensively.
Liverpool's back-to-back defeats following five straight wins gives a more accurate picture of how they have been playing, while Tottenham have needed to be very efficient to make up for their lack of dominance in games.
Aston Villa's early-season struggles are no longer to do with finishing - they have now scored six non-penalty goals from an xG of 6.0 - but simply because they have not been playing well.
While promoted sides Leeds and Sunderland have adapted quite well to the top-flight, Burnley have struggled to make the jump so far with both the worst attack and the worst defence.
Gossip: Amorim keen on Reteguipublished at 07:58 BST 16 October
07:58 BST 16 October
Manchester United are interested in signing a striker in the summer and are targeting Mateo Retegui, with Ruben Amorim prepared to spend up to £52m to sign the 26-year-old Italy forward from Saudi Pro League club Al-Qadsiah. (Fichajes - in Spanish), external
Crystal Palace are relaxed about the future of Adam Wharton amid increasing speculation of interest from Premier League rivals Manchester United for the 21-year-old England midfielder. (Sky Sports), external
Barcelona and Real Madrid are set to battle each other to sign Bayern Munich defender Dayot Upamecano, 26, on a free transfer next summer but Manchester United are also interested in the France international. (Footmercato - in French), external
AS Roma are in pole position to sign Manchester United forward Joshua Zirkzee but Como also have the finances to bring the 24-year-old Netherlands striker back to Serie A. (Gazzetta dello Sport - in Italian), external
Man Utd block 6,500 'bot' ticket salespublished at 20:07 BST 15 October
20:07 BST 15 October
Simon Stone Manchester United reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Manchester United blocked the sale of 4,500 tickets for last month's Premier League home game with Chelsea.
United said action was taken after determining the tickets were being purchased by account holders with the use of automated systems that prevent genuine supporters getting to them.
In addition to the 4,500, the club said another 2,000 were "successfully reclaimed" and put on resale.
In the minutes of their latest Fans' Forum meeting, held on 8 October, United stressed their determination to ensure "fair access to tickets" was a top priority.
"Long before recent media coverage, we started strengthening our systems to identify and block accounts using automated software ("bots")," the minutes read.
"Where we cancel tickets, we notify the supporter and take a fair, evidence-based approach to any appeals."
The report said computer programmes automate the official ticket-buying process and allow touts to buy multiple tickets simultaneously.
Posing as a potential customer, we spoke to one company selling such technology.
They offered us software designed to target the ticket platforms of five Premier League clubs - Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham.
The bots were priced at $2,500 (£1,870) per club, or $9,900 (£7,400) for a package deal.
Schmeichel would 'love' decision-making rolepublished at 14:30 BST 15 October
14:30 BST 15 October
Image source, Getty Images
Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel says he would "absolutely love" a decision-making role at Old Trafford.
The iconic goalkeeper spent time speaking to the BBC's Sacked In The Morning podcast, with a focus on how to make United great again.
Schmeichel said: "You now have a head coach. Then you get a director of football or technical director. You have a head of recruitment, who is very powerful. The CEO is powerful. You have people deciding on who is coming in.
"The signing of [Benjamin] Sesko was a bit weird to me. We had [Rasmus] Hojlund, starved of service for two years. You only need to see what he is doing now at Napoli with [Kevin] De Bruyne and [Scott] McTominay to play with. I have consistently said Hojlund will be a 25-goal-a-season striker, but he needs service.
"At the time, we brought [Matheus] Cunha and [Bryan] Mbeumo in - players who would give Hojlund first-class service. We spent £70m or so on Sesko [but] we don't have that number six we should have.
"Then there's the goalkeeper situation as well. This season alone, we have conceded nine goals from goalkeeping errors. That is too much. When I played, or Edwin van der Sar, or David de Gea, the brief was to win 10 points a season.
"When I played, the manager was in charge. He said: 'Him in, him out.' Now it is different people with different agendas. How can you create an environment stable enough to have a team that can go on the pitch and win every year?"
Asked if United could get him involved in a senior role behind the scenes, Schmeichel said: "I would love that. I would absolutely love that."
Gossip: Man Utd target Semenyo does have release clause published at 07:06 BST 15 October
07:06 BST 15 October
Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo does have a release clause in his contract but the Cherries are keeping it under wraps because they want to hang on to the 25-year-old Ghana international who has been linked with Tottenham and Manchester United. (Talksport), external
Brighton have no plans to cash in on Cameroon midfielder Carlos Baleba in January despite the 21-year-old attracting interest from United last summer. (Talksport), external
Also in midfield, United are considering extending Casemiro's contract beyond this season, but only if the 33-year-old takes a cut in wages. (Mail), external
There has been interest in Casemiro in Brazil and Saudi Arabia but boss Ruben Amorim could make a case for the former Real Madrid player to stay. (ESPN), external
Finally, Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, 33, has made it clear he has no plans to leave the club despite the Germany international attracting interest from clubs including United and Newcastle. (Diario AS - in Spanish, external)
Sesko 'shown signs of having the talent to overcome the noise'published at 12:23 BST 14 October
12:23 BST 14 October
Alex Turk Fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
Benjamin Sesko has scored two goals in four Premier League starts for Manchester United. That is already half the tally that his predecessor, Rasmus Hojlund, managed throughout the entirety of last season.
The 22-year-old - a very young age for a striker arriving from overseas at the Premier League's most scrutinised club - has also shown clear signs of improvement every game.
Goals scored in back-to-back games before the October international break - with severely limited service - have not been the most impressive aspect of his start.
Sesko is already flaunting eye-catching qualities to glue the ball to his body from the air and the ground, linking up attacks and making United's forward line tick.
However, on Monday, a graphic surfaced on social media, showing the results after 20 agents were asked for their "worst deal" of the summer transfer window.
Sesko emphatically led the way with six votes, ahead of James Trafford (three) and then players who received one.
Among those? Liverpool's £200m-plus attacking duo of Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak, who have not mustered up a league goal between them yet.
They may well come good at Anfield - and they should - but it does make highlighting a United player all the more baffling. And when has anyone ever cared what agents think?
If Sesko somehow was not aware of what the life of a Manchester United footballer is like yet, he will be now.
But he has shown signs of having the talent to overcome the noise and ensure his career at Old Trafford does not end as prematurely as his predecessor's did.
Chelsea's pursuit of Palace's Adam Wharton has intensified but they face competition from United for the 21-year-old England midfielder. (Teamtalk), external
Manchester United are monitoring Germany and Bayern Munich midfielder Aleksandar Pavlovic, 21. (Football Insider), external
🎧 Paul Parker specialpublished at 15:06 BST 13 October
15:06 BST 13 October
The former United defender joins this week's episode of BBC Radio Manchester's The Devils' Advocate podcast to talk about his career and the current situation at Old Trafford.
Will Rashford sign for Barca permanently?published at 09:44 BST 13 October
09:44 BST 13 October
Elizabeth Conway Spanish football reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Marcus Rashford arrived in Barcelona determined to make his mark and launch a positive new chapter in an up-and-down career.
The La Liga giants have the option of signing him on a permanent basis for £30.3m (35m euros) in 2026, but that is something that Barca's sporting director Deco told Spanish media would only be discussed at a later date.
"It's too early to talk about decisions for next season but what matters is that we're happy with him," he said.
This was reiterated by another source at the club, who said: "We're all delighted and thrilled with him and his performance - Deco, Hansi Flick, and his team-mates. Marcus is also happy with us, with his team-mates and with the city of Barcelona.
"It's obvious that if he continues to develop like this, there's a very good chance that this will be the case. But we're only at the beginning of the season and it's still too early to talk about this."
Barcelona have big fixtures to come before the next round of international matches, including a derby against Girona, Champions League games against Olympiacos and Club Brugge, and the Clasico against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.
Off the back of successive defeats by Paris St-Germain and Sevilla, and with Raphinha returning from injury, Spanish media suggest Flick will be making some tactical changes.
For Rashford, it presents an opportunity to adapt and demonstrate his versatility as his quest continues for a consistent starting role.
He wanted this move in January, had to wait until the summer, and before he had kicked a ball was quick to say Barcelona "feels like home". The onus is now on him to make sure it remains that way.
Gossip: Barca prepared to make Rashford move permanentpublished at 07:07 BST 13 October
07:07 BST 13 October
Barcelona are ready to take up the option to make Marcus Rashford's loan move from Manchester United a permanent one following the forward's impressive early season form. (Sun), external
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, BBC Sport
