Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano expects Raphael Varane to leave Man Utd as things stand, while Christian Eriksen is “not entirely happy” at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils have not had the best season with Erik ten Hag’s side finishing bottom of their Champions League group and crashing out of Europe, while they are struggling for consistency in the Premier League.

Eriksen set for ‘face-to-face talks with Ten Hag’

A 4-3 win over Liverpool in their FA Cup quarter-final on Sunday has given them, along with Champions League qualification, something to aim for during the rest of the campaign.
Varane and Eriksen have both been prone to injury this season, which has not helped the Red Devils’ cause, while Ten Hag has also opted to leave the duo out of starting XI for certain matches.
Eriksen has started just one match since the turn of the year, while Varane has become more of a regular in the starting line-up again in recent weeks with the France international starting alongside Victor Lindelof in their win over Liverpool at the weekend.
But Romano insists it’s still very likely that Varane departs Man Utd this summer and he has revealed that unhappy Eriksen is set for “face-to-face talks with Ten Hag and the club”.
READ MORE: Five reasons Gareth Southgate would *actually* be good for Manchester United
Related video: Erik ten Hag says Manchester United have no plans to sell Marcus Rashford (Daily Mail)

You have envisaged a situation where the club may look

Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column about the Man Utd pair: “Another player who is not entirely happy with his situation is Manchester United’s Christian Eriksen, who spoke in an interview about his conversations with Erik ten Hag. He has made it clear he is not happy always being on the bench, so in the summer transfer window his situation could be one to watch.
“The plan for now is for Eriksen to discuss his future ahead of the summer transfer window in face-to-face talks with Ten Hag and the club. Eriksen is appreciated at the club as an honest and super professional guy, so Man United will be clear with him and we will see both sides’ decisions.
“As things stand, it looks like Eriksen and Sofyan Amrabat could be two players who could leave Manchester United in the summer. For Amrabat, Manchester United are not convinced about triggering the buy option to sign him permanently from Fiorentina, so there is a concrete possibility for him to return to the Serie A club, this is the internal feeling.

Romano: Varane stay at Man Utd ‘looks unlikely’

“I’ve also had many questions about Raphael Varane. We’ve had many rumours about him receiving a new contract proposal, but this is not my understanding. From what I’m told, Varane has not received a single contract proposal and there is no negotiation with Man United. Let’s see what will happen in the next months, but if there is no change he will leave as a free agent because his contract is expiring.
“I expect Varane to have many options in Europe and in Saudi, for sure. He will take his time over his future, but at current stages it looks unlikely for Varane to stay at Man United.”

Liverpool confirm Hughes as new sporting director as Edwards endorses move

Liverpool have confirmed Richard Hughes as their new sporting director after leaving his role as Bournemouth technical director.
The Reds’ owners FSG have already moved to bring Michael Edwards back to Anfield following the news that Jurgen Klopp will leave Anfield at the end of the season to take a break from football.

Richard Hughes: I am incredibly proud

And now Liverpool announced the arrival of Hughes from Bournemouth on Wednesday afternoon with the new sporting director officially taking over on June 1 ahead of the 2024/25 season.
Speaking on his new role, Hughes commented: “I am incredibly proud to be offered this opportunity. Liverpool FC is a unique club and I’m grateful to be given a chance to serve it in this capacity.
“People rightly talk about the rich history this organisation can boast, but it is the present and future which really excites me. Jürgen Klopp is leading an outstanding team and squad and alongside that the commitment to young players and their pathway to the first team is also outstanding.
“I am fully aware of the expectations and responsibilities that come with taking this position. It will be my job, working with Michael [Edwards] and leading the football operations team already in place, plus the wider staff at the AXA Training Centre, to make good decisions.
Related video: Klopp relies on youth amid injury chaos as farewell tour heads to Old Trafford. (Sports AlDente)

As Liverpool navigates through a season marred by injuries and

READ MORE: Liverpool will flounder outside top four without ‘lucky’ Jurgen Klopp…
“That’s really what the job entails: you have to make the kind of good decisions which enhance the prospects of having a team that wins and excites the supporters. It is what Liverpool have done well for a very long time and the benefits are there for everyone to see.”
And Edwards seemed equally thrilled to have Hughes on board, he told Liverpool’s official website: “I’m delighted Richard has agreed to join us in this vitally important position.
“I’ve known him for half of my life in a professional and personal capacity and he is absolutely someone who embodies the best values of Liverpool FC. I trust him completely.
“He has outstanding judgement and a track record of making smart decisions which benefit the organisations he represents.
“Both Richard and I are aware of the weight of responsibility that comes with working in this capacity for a club such as this. The fact he is excited and energised by the challenge ahead is important.

Edwards: I am confident we have the right person in position

“It is clear to everyone that Jürgen will leave a legacy to build upon and in Richard we have the right person to make the key decisions and offer the leadership to take us forward into a bright future.
“As one very successful chapter will come to a close for Liverpool in the summer, the objective of everyone here is for another one to begin – and with Richard I am confident we have the right person in position for us to achieve this aim.”
READ MORE: Arsenal catching Man City, above Liverpool, in top 20 clubs ranked by transfer allure to new signings
The identity of Klopp’s successor at Liverpool is still unknown but former Reds striker Dean Saunders has heard that the players would like assistant Pep Lijnders to stay on as manager.
Saunders’ co-host Alan Brazil started: “I am told the players wouldn’t mind the number two, Pep taking over.”
To which Saunders replied: “”I heard that as well. At least he [Lijnders] knows what’s going on there. It’s difficult, who do you give the job to? That club is that big.”

Gareth Southgate at Man Utd would prompt ‘incandescent rage’ from Keane

The prospect of Gareth Southgate at Manchester United is impressing nobody at all, while there are also views on LiVARpool and more.
Send your thoughts to theeditor@football365.com
 
Ever-changing moods
Give that dude a raise. The moods was the most enjoyable read since that short-lived series on playing old Champ Man.

Finlay x
 
Please explain Southgate to Man Utd
I probably need to apologize, but this is a genuine question and I would like to see if there are answers to this, but I am not sure what the rationale is for Gareth Southgate being considered a Number 1 replacement for Eric Ten Hag.
Yes, he has been a relatively successful manager at International level, and before people jump up and down frothing and spluttering about the achievements of England at recent international tournaments I would ask, does that carry the same weight and or pressure as managing week in week out in clubland? Do his previous achievements at club level merit him being considered for one of the traditional big 6? (Please note I said traditional big 6 before all those who like to call out recent irrelevancy get started).
What is the criteria being used by those advocating he replace Ten Hag? I am not suggesting that Ten Hag is the answer, rather, if there is a criteria being used to push for installing him as the next great hope of Man United then please let’s hear it.
Related video: 'I have not been at my best' - Fernandes admits he has struggled at Man Utd this season (SNTV)

If it is the “proper football man” criteria framed around the inevitable droning that he understands the league and/or club (does he really?), he is English (Dave Sexton anyone?), has achieved great outcomes at the national level and United being the biggest English club need to go English rather than Dutch, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese etc., then that is quite the spurious criteria.
On another note could you imagine the incandescent rage and the milk-curdling facial expressions that Roy Keane would offer up after any tepid or uninspired performance by Man United with Southgate as manager? Delicious.
I suppose to then just be provocative if Southgate was seriously being considered for this role given his achievements at the national level why has his name not been mentioned with the same strength in conjunction with the upcoming vacancy at Liverpool? And, again, I am not advocating that either so the froth and bubble brigade can all calm down on that score.


I’ll leave that with you.
Loyal Weighted Pass
READ: Five reasons Gareth Southgate would *actually* be good for Manchester United
 
Ten Hag in. For now
Ten Hag’s future is the source of great debate at the moment. Personally, I’d keep him on, but I wouldn’t be offering a contract extension.The results this season have been disappointing, no one is going to argue with that, but as Marcotti repeatedly says, this is an abysmally constructed squad and Ten Hag is less culpable than more than a decade of failing for that.
If the defence lines up without both Shaw and Martinez, our only players that can start in central defence that are left footed, good in possession and quick, the defence has to drop 5 to 10 yards deeper and has limited ability to play out. This then has a knock on effect to the rest of the team, especially the midfield.
Up front, it’s laughable to the point of negligence to go into a season with Hojlund, a rookie, as first choice with only Anthony “heart-of-a-mouse, knees-made-of-biscuits” Martial as a backup. Even an incredibly limited round peg, like a Weghorst, for that glaring round hole would’ve been useful. There’s a raft of other issues, but for the sake of brevity, those are the two of the most glaringly obvious.

So whilst not blameless, he’s also not entirely responsible. The players still seem to be playing for him, which is an encouraging sign, and on the rare occasions we’ve had something approaching a first XI out, we’ve been pretty good.
Then there’s the question of a replacement; in an unusual twist of events, there are a lot of top jobs available this summer. Bayern, Liverpool and Barca are all after new managers, Juve, Milan, Dortmund and others may be too. It’s going to be a competitive field and the chances are that our first choice will have a better option.
On top of that, there’s the list of candidates. I covered De Zerbi in a recent mail; no thanks. Tuchel is a good coach but he falls out with everyone, we don’t need that. Southgate is suited to international football; he’d be awful at United. Flick? Possibly, but it would be as likely to go dreadfully as it did to go well. Potter? Not got the personality or charisma to manage a top club. Amorim? I’ve no idea, don’t know enough about him but it would seem a similar appointment to when we brought in Ten Hag.

Finally, there’s massive change at the top. New CEO, DoF, recruitment department etc. Wouldn’t it be better to let them all get their feet under the table, have time to analyse what’s wrong and build working relationships before making a call on the manager?
So I think the smart thing would be to leave him place for the time being whilst we build those structures around the manager. If there’s no great strides taken next season, then we can thank him for his service and move on.
Lewis, Busby Way
 
Is FFP designed to keep new money in its place?
An unoriginal thought, but surely FFP is nothing but a ploy to keep the top clubs, well…on top.
Take Newcastle for example. Sure, little sympathy for the play thing of a Saudi Prince, but the fact that in order to compete at the top, they’ll have to sell Isak and/or Guimareas – their two best players – just seems counter productive. Sure, they’ll get the guts of £200 million, but it’ll be more than likely to the Premier League teams above them, your Cities, Arsenal’s, United’s etc.

Yeah, Newcastle can improve their squad in a few areas, but they need to replace those players as well. And everyone will know they’ve £200 million burning a hole in their pocket. Plus their rivals will have improved with their player best players. And what happens in Newcastle’s replacements are great, will the same thing not just happen again further down the line?
Yeah, something needs to be done to stop the rampant financial might of football and the Premier League, but at this stage is it not already a case of the horse has bolted, so why not let them all do it?
Neill, (Gary Neville’s (or the one he suggests, think it might be Steve Parish’s) suggestion might be the best solution), Ireland
 
Why are the government so interested in football?
It’s strange, in a way, that an industry – spectator sports – garners as much attention as it does compared to other industries, given its relatively small size. How many industries have a huge section, the back section, of newspapers devoted to them?

The average large supermarket will have larger revenues than clubs outside the EPL and, perhaps, the top 5 Championship teams (parachute payments.) I read that the worldwide combined revenues for spectator sports were equivalent to that of a single company – Johnson & Johnson, while American Football (the ‘richest’ spectator sport) was equivalent to one US paint retail chain, Sherwin-Williams.
Also, how many entire industries essentially make a loss year after year? English football does.
Football’s outsized ‘cultural’ footprint certainly dwarfs its economic ‘weight.’
And now the Government putting in a regulator.
It’s not the financial ‘rules’ that are wrong—they could be improved—but the owners who decided they could flaunt them, work around them, or complain about them. The proposed new rules may be slightly better—keeping up with the increased EPL revenues—but they won’t change how the industry operates—at a loss. So perhaps regulating the owners is a good idea.

Perhaps we would see less of the hypocrisy from clubs being currently penalized. But they all act like kids squabbling. Demanding, throwing insults, refusing to acknowledge their own failures. So perhaps it does require ‘mum and dad’ regulator to come in and ‘save’ the heritage of our football clubs.
But I don’t see the Government as interested in saving the destruction of city centres due to large retail stores or the heritage of local public services – things that impact everyone, not just the football fans. The entire country’s GDP has been dropping due to poor decisions during and post-COVID and the complete balls up with Brexit. Everyone is a little worse off (or a lot.) Trains run like sh*t, restaurants and pubs can’t find staff, even if they can keep them open with the huge utility cost increases. I could go on.
Weird. Just totally weird that with so much else that needs work – lots of work – here we are regulating a relatively small and always loss-making industry to what, save it?

It just goes to show the outsized impact football has that it completely skews rational thinking.
Does this risk alienating an even greater share of the public with their everyday economic struggles?
Paul McDevitt
 
Are Arsenal the kinkiest club on the planet?
It suddenly occurred to me to wonder: do any other clubs produce “fans” like Stewie Griffin (or his doppelganger Ricky R. at the Athletic)… or is this purely an Arsenal phenomenon?
Obviously there have been disappointed fans here and there (Raul Garcia says get rid of Nunez in today’s mailbox, e.g.) but I can’t think of any other club that “features” the kind of vitriolic, bitter loathing coming from inside the house. Other people hate Arsenal and Arsenal fans, sure, but Stewie hates both the club and its fans far more.
Does anyone else have a good explanation for why Arsenal seems to attract a higher proportion of this special brand of masochist?

Ciborium (gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “Premier League whipping boys”)
 
What about Son? Is there a curse?
Maybe an original thought now, but all the talk about Harry Kane having never won a trophy, what about Hueng-min Son?
What an unbelievably great player and professional throughout his career, an absolutely joy to watch. A scorer of great goals and a great scorer of goals, among many other qualities. As you’ve said, one of this season’s best players, but surely one of the best Premier League players in the last 5 or so years.
Not trying to say he should move on from Spurs, but imagine if he had joined Liverpool instead 9 years ago. Son man!
Neill, Ireland
 
Why so bitter about Liverpool, Mr Spurs?
It’s amusing to see a Spurs fan so bitter about how our season is going, I thought it was all positive vibes or something to care about our ‘luck’. Speaking of which it’s not like you guys needed an unlucky own goal to beat nine men eh?

Konate might have well been sent off but who’s to say that 10 men Liverpool don’t win that game against Everton who were also down a man. I mean we did beat Newcastle with a red card which seems to irk you for some reason.
Palace did get their penalty eventually. Jota being sent off against your team didn’t seem to bother you. Maybe Ayew shouldn’t have been ‘reckless’ and given the ref a decision to make. If Salah hadn’t scored I believe we would have been awarded a penalty for a foul on Jones.
We didn’t get battered at Newcastle, that would be Spurs wasn’t it 5 goals in 30 minutes? Maybe you should watch us less if it annoys you so much? Plus aren’t you the ones struggling to get a UCL place?
Philip
 
…For a supposed “neutral” casually tuning in for a weekend cup tie, Fred from London certainly has Liverpool on the mind (no doubt living rent-free in there, as they say).

From time to time I hear a certain banal expression in passing, and for some strange reason it makes me think “Spurs !” every time, almost reflexively, like a panting Pavlovian (or Dulux paints) dog. It’s that one about throwing stones whilst living in a glass house. I don’t know why I associate such an otherwise unremarkable expression with a specific club. The most simple explanation I make for myself is that whenever I think the history of the Tottenham I don’t really think football… I just think of their grounds. For it is the most prominent and beautiful glass house in all of North London, if not the greater sporting world. And it is home to an equally prominent, equally beautiful glass jaw.
Eric, Los Angeles CA (Another neutral opinion is that if Arsenal go on to lift the European Cup, it only furthers the well-tread idea that even at most generous, there is no Big Six, only a Factual Five.)

 
..Quite incredible that you can ride your luck for 7 years isn’t it? You would think it’s statistically impossible, but not according to Fred. Klopp is apparently some some mystical good luck charm that allows his team to win in spite of all other factors.
Fred’s mail reminded me a lot of my younger, more immature self. I always used to talk about ‘lucky’ Frank Lampard (95% of his goals were deflections don’t you know?) and ‘lucky’ Man United (so many late goals – so lucky).
Then I matured a bit and realised that they weren’t lucky, they were good.
As Michael Jordan said: “The harder I prepare, the luckier I seem to get.”
Mike, LFC, Dubai
 
LiVARpool?
I see this stupid narrative has raised its head again that we ride luck and ref decisions. If y’all will take a look at the VAR table you’ll find Liverpool at the bottom…again. Every year except one we have been given the least decisions by the referee.Not that I’m blaming that for losses, when we lose it’s because we were the worst side (except spurs which was genuinely robbery) , no I’m bringing this up just to point out their either y’all are wilfully lying or you don’t bother to fact check because of the top 6 teams we get the least decisions. If you wanna say we are rubbish, fair enough. But don’t lie and say we are the referees darlings because actual statistical evidence doesn’t support that wild claim.

VAR – NET SCORE
Nottm Forest +4
Fulham +3
Aston Villa +2
Brentford +2
Manchester City +2
Chelsea +2
Everton +1
Newcastle +1
Brighton & Hove Albion 0
Burnley 0
Luton 0
Tottenham 0
Arsenal -1
Crystal Palace -1
AFC Bournemouth -2
Manchester United -2
West Ham -2
Liverpool -3
Sheff United -3
Wolves -3
Lee
 
A public service announcement
Given that we’re now into the footballing wasteland that is the International break, I thought I’d remind the Mailbox about a great movie they could be watching instead of kicking their heels at home: Copa ’71.
It’s a documentary about the first Women’s World Cup (or second, depending on who you talk to). It was held in Mexico back in (you guessed it) 1971, and was organised without the support or recognition of FIFA or UEFA. The film is a tight 90 minutes and features TV footage and photos from the tournament. It also has preset-day interviews with the players, talking about the highs and the lows of the tournament, and the attitude of the public and authorities. It also deals with how FIFA, UEFA and the FA reacted to the tournament. No prizes for guessing how that went.

What makes the film so enjoyable is the amount of behind-the scenes photos, mostly shot by the players themselves, that show them having the time of their lives. Despite the repercussions afterwards, you come away with the feeling that all of them would go through it again. The soundtrack is pretty cracking too.
You might need to search this one out, as it’s not on in most of the main multiplexes. A quick search of my local cinemas shows a few showings on Wednesday 20th March but no other dates., Hopefully this marvellous movie will find a wider audience via streaming.
JD, London