MANCHESTER: Manchester United interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy believes his side can bounce back from their worst start to the season after seeing his team’s spirit shown in the two games since Erik ten Hag was sacked.

Moises Caicedo’s second-half strike cancelled out United’s early penalty for a 1-1 draw in the Premier League clash at Old Trafford.

Despite not managing to collect full points, Van Nistelrooy said there were positives to take from the match.

“We take the lead first and the performance, with the spirit shown, is the basis for building a team… then the quality of football will emerge.

“That is the basis needed to build it, and there is still a lot of time to improve the position,” said Van Nistelrooy.

The draw saw United climb one place, to 13th after 10 games.

Van Nistelrooy said, since the day Ten Hag was fired, the situation has been very difficult for the team.

“Six days, emotions up and down, obviously very sad to see Erik go, the next day you have to focus again for the game against Leicester (Wednesday’s 5-2 League Cup win), because 75,000 fans will be at Old Trafford, so we have a responsibility , and the players realize they need to do better,” he said.

United’s nine goals in 10 games, the third-worst in the league, is their lowest tally at this level since the 1973-74 league campaign.

LONDON: Ruben Amorim has been announced as Manchester United’s new manager to replace the sacked Erik ten Hag.

The 39-year-old Portuguese coach, who won two Primeira Liga titles with Sporting Lisbon, signed a contract until 2027 and will join the club on November 11.

“Manchester United is delighted to announce the appointment of Ruben Amorim as head coach of the men’s first team, subject to work visa requirements,” United said on their official website.

“He will be with the team until June 2027 with an additional year option, once he completes his responsibilities with his current club.”

United describe Amorim as one of the most exciting and high-calibre young coaches in European football.

Ruud van Nistelrooy will continue to manage the team until Amorim arrives at Old Trafford.

United sacked Ten Hag on Monday after a 2-1 defeat at the hands of West Ham left them 14th in the Premier League, with just three wins from nine games.

LONDON: Liverpool boss Arne Slot insists Erik ten Hag will be back at “a big club again” after being sacked by Manchester United.

Ten Hag’s two-year spell as United manager came to an end yesterday, with the English giants languishing in 14th place in the league following a 2-1 defeat at West Ham last weekend – his final game in charge.

Slot’s team was also involved in putting pressure on his compatriot from the Netherlands, Ten Hag with a 3-0 win at Old Trafford last September.

But despite the animosity between Liverpool and United, the Reds boss – in his first season in the hot seat at Anfield after replacing Jurgen Klopp – was sympathetic when asked about the Ten Hag during yesterday’s pre-match press conference ahead of Liverpool’s League Cup clash with Brighton at home.

“He is a Dutch manager which makes it more difficult for me,” said Slot, 46.

“I sympathize with his plight. We’re all in this job so we know it can happen.

“I only know him a little bit and I know how hard he works. For him it’s certainly disappointing. But we also know how good he was at Ajax and he won two trophies (League Cup and FA Cup) here.

“I think you’ll see him at a big club again after this.”

Ten Hag helped United deny Premier League champions Manchester City a domestic double with a surprise FA Cup final victory over their neighbors at Wembley last May.

“I feel really sorry for him, it’s one of the best jobs in football,” City manager Pep Guardiola said of Ten Hag.

“There’s only us, not teachers or architects or anything like that.

“I wish him the best and he will come back stronger. If the results are not good enough, you will be fired. No one is different, including myself.”

LONDON: Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag said he could only blame his team’s finishing after the 2-1 defeat at the hands of West Ham late last night.

United slumped to 14th in the Premier League (EPL) table after Jarrod Bowen’s controversial stoppage-time penalty gifted the Hammers all three points.

Crysencio Summerville put West Ham ahead against the run of play 16 minutes from time before Casemiro equalised.

Ten Hag were furious at the awarding of the penalty after VAR intervened when Matthijs de Ligt collided with Danny Ings in the penalty box.

United captain Bruno Fernandes’ red card was withdrawn after he was sent off in last month’s 3-0 defeat at Tottenham and Ten Hag said VAR was inconsistent in challenging the referee’s decision in the middle of the pitch.

“Before the season they explained the VAR process – only when it was clear they could intervene,” said Ten Hag.

“What they didn’t do against Spurs, it was a bad decision. Now they made a bad decision and they both had an impact on the game. I’m not criticizing the officials, I’m criticizing the process.”

However, less sharp finishing in front of goal caused United to fail to get a much-needed win.

Diogo Dalot missed chances despite the goal gaping, while Alejandro Garnacho and Fernandes were guilty of missing golden opportunities in their dominant first half.

“We created too many chances, played good football, especially in the first half. That’s how I want my team to perform whether with the ball or not,” stressed Ten Hag.

United’s tally of eight goals from their first nine games is their worst in the EPL era.

BARCELONA: Barcelona manager Hansi Flick says his side’s 4-1 win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League has boosted their confidence ahead of Saturday’s Clasico clash with Real Madrid.

Former Bayern boss Flick is happy to help Barca end their win streak over the German club.

“This win is unbelievable. Bayern are a good team, with great players who know how to play very well, you want to see them in action.

“Of course a win like this needs to be celebrated. It gives us confidence in our quality ahead of this Saturday’s game.

“What this team showed proved that you can achieve great success. We played very bravely, that’s why I’m quite happy

“We have less time than Real Madrid to prepare for the Clasico, but all the players want to play. We will be ready,” said Flick.

After losing six in a row – with Barcelona conceding 22 goals to Bayern’s just four, including an 8-2 defeat in the Champions League quarter-finals four years ago – the Spanish giants have been more aggressive this time around.

Raphinha scored a hat-trick to seal Barcelona’s win at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium, with former Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski also scoring.

Bayern burst into the game with a single goal through Harry Kane.

WOLVERHAMPTON, England: Manchester City’s controversial last-minute winner against Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday was justified and justified by his players’ patience, manager Pep Guardiola said.

As City looked set for a disappointing 1-1 draw at Molineux despite full possession, John Stones headed in a 95th-minute corner beyond the reach of Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa.

Referee Chris Kavanagh initially disallowed the goal because City midfielder Bernardo Silva was too close to Sa, but the video assistant referee (VAR) ruled he was not obstructing vision and Kavanagh reversed the decision.

“Bernardo didn’t disturb the position… Sa had perfect vision. Phil’s (Foden) corner and header were amazing,” said Guardiola, who wildly celebrated the 2-1 win, making it a club record 31 league games without lose.

“We are not used to winning games at the end of action, like Jurgen Klopp (former manager) in Liverpool where it happened many times. It is a good feeling for us,” he told the media.

Guardiola’s men had 78 percent of possession against Wolves, who are struggling at the bottom of the league and were desperate to defend once they took an early lead.

“With 11 players in the penalty box, basically it’s too difficult,” said Guardiola, recalling his side’s defeat at Molineux last season. “But we persevered… We stuck to our ways and it was too good.”

He however sympathized with the opposing team.

“We’ve been in that situation, when you lose at the end of the action. But this is the game,” said Guardiola.

“We played the way we wanted to play and it’s nice to be here, to score in the last 50 seconds and go top of the league (for a while).”

With Sparta Prague awaiting them in the Champions League early this Thursday morning, Guardiola said he did not believe injured defender Kyle Walker or midfielder Kevin De Bruyne could be ready to start.

“We have a few days to train, but I don’t think so (both will perform),” he said.

LONDON: Roy Keane says, Pep Guardiola is the right person to guide England, if Lee Carsley is not interested in becoming a permanent manager.

After losing 2-1 at the hands of Greece, England, who were temporarily controlled by Carsley, came back to beat Finland 3-1.

His gamble – dropping Dean Henderson for the first time in four years and deploying Trent Alexander-Arnold at left-back – proved to be paying off.

Liverpool defender Jack Grealish and Declan Rice were on target at the Olympic Stadium to secure victory in the UEFA Nations League action.

But England are still looking for Gareth Southgate’s replacement with Carsley more likely to return to guide the country’s under-21 squad.

According to Keane, England should be looking for the best manager to continue the mission of the group of talented players that are currently there.

“Take Pep (Guardiola), take the best. The FA needs to find the best, I don’t know if financial factors play a role.

“If Lee is not interested, the FA should continue to look for the right individual,” Keane said.

Guardiola’s contract at Manchester City expires next summer.

After winning his first two games as caretaker manager, Carsley began to be positioned as a candidate to replace Southgate on a permanent basis.

But the manager of England’s youth squad feels that he is not yet eligible for promotion and is more interested in continuing his mission with the under-21 squad.

LONDON: Predictions of the final standings of the English Premier League (EPL) have been revealed after a supercomputer made thousands of predictions of match results with some of them surprising.

Liverpool top the table ahead of their second international break of the season with new boss Arne Slot enjoying a dream start to his managerial career at Anfield.

Manchester City and Arsenal trail close behind with just one point separating the top three after seven games, while Chelsea have impressed under Enzo Maresca.

Erik ten Hag’s third campaign at Manchester United saw them look to challenge for the title but instead endured their worst start to an EPL campaign and remain 14th in the table.

Now, Opta’s supercomputer has processed the data and predicted fans will celebrate the new EPL champions next May ending City’s stranglehold on the English premier league.

The predictive points model uses statistics from the season so far to simulate and rank the 20 teams competing with United fans expected to have a bad year if the numbers prove true.

The computer picked Liverpool to win the title for the second time in the EPL era, fending off challenges from Arsenal and Manchester City to do so.

Chelsea – buoyed by the sensational form of Cole Palmer – were surprise favorites to finish second in what was seen as an encouraging result for Maresca after years of the club’s struggles.

The Blues are expected to finish ahead of their London rivals, Arsenal, with Mikel Arteta’s men predicted not to finish in the top four but instead slump to eighth at the end of the season.

Pep Guardiola’s City are expected to drop to third place after winning the league for a record four seasons in a row, with Tottenham fourth and Aston Villa fifth.

However, Manchester United is predicted to end the season in 10th place which will see the club face consecutive ‘disasters’.

Wolves, Leicester and Ipswich are predicted to be relegated to the Championship League after struggling in the early weeks of the EPL.

LONDON: Paris St Germain manager Luis Enrique said he did not know how long it would take his team to bounce back in European competition after losing 2-0 to Arsenal in the Champions League at the Emirates.

The French champions, who lost their prolific striker Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid last summer, lost for the first time this season.

Goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka netted for Mikel Arteta’s side, and PSG saw both of their efforts hit the post.

Enrique, who dropped striker Ousmane Dembele due to a disciplinary problem, accepted responsibility for the defeat but questioned the fighting spirit of his men in London.

“Today we performed below the level required for a game like this. Arsenal were much better in terms of pressure, intensity, they won every fight.

“It’s impossible to get positive results when you don’t win every battle on the pitch, their defense pressures our strikers and our defense doesn’t do the same to their strikers. Arsenal are better,” Enrique said.

The Spanish operator took PSG to the semi-finals of the Champions League last season after they beat his former club Barcelona in the quarter-finals with Mbappe scoring twice and Dembele also finding the target.

Dembele is considered Mbappe’s replacement in PSG’s attack this season, but Enrique’s decision to drop the player ahead of the trip to the Emirates raises questions.

The 27-year-old was punished by Enrique after he showed his displeasure at being sent off in Friday’s win over Rennes.

MANCHESTER, England: Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has defended captain Bruno Fernandes after the midfielder’s lackluster start to the season, saying it is only a matter of time before the Portugal international returns to his best form.

Fernandes has completed just one assist and is yet to score a goal this season and the midfielder has been criticized for his performances in United’s last two games in draws with Crystal Palace and Twente Enschede.

Ten Hag was asked if the 30-year-old was tired after a difficult last season when he played more than 4,000 minutes for United before representing his country at Euro 2024.

“I think the team put him in a situation. I think he can and has proven it, many times in the Premier League, he can create many chances,” Ten Hag told reporters yesterday ahead of Sunday’s home game against Tottenham Hotspur.

“I’m sure he won’t do it any differently. He’ll get back to his best form.

“He has created chances but he will make the last pass, he will score 100 per cent. Only time will tell.”

United have conceded just five goals in the league this season and sit 11th in the table.

“We have players in the team who are capable of scoring goals. But it’s clear when you look at all the chances we create, we don’t score enough goals,” said Ten Hag.

United have failed to beat Spurs for two years and are in a clash that has traditionally produced plenty of goals.

Ten Hag said he expects a tough match against Ange Postecoglou’s men who have collected seven points and are 10th on goal difference.