Manchester United are reportedly prepared to allow five players to leave when the summer transfer window opens

Manchester United are reportedly willing to let five players depart the club when the summer transfer window opens. The Reds are currently pursuing Champions League qualification following a season without European competition.

Michael Carrick was appointed as interim head coach by United in January and has since guided the team to six victories in his eight matches at the helm, a spell of results which has propelled the club to third position in the Premier League table.

United are now well-placed to secure Champions League qualification, especially if England are granted five qualification spots based on their UEFA coefficient this term.

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Irrespective of where United finish in the Premier League table this season, new information has surfaced regarding the Old Trafford hierarchy’s strategy for the summer transfer window. According to The Sun, five players could depart United during the summer as the club seeks to generate funds to cover the £422million they still owe in transfer fees.

They claim Mason Mount, Joshua Zirkzee, Rasmus Hojlund, Andre Onana and Manuel Ugarte could all leave United permanently this summer, all of whom signed during Erik ten Hag’s Old Trafford tenure.

Hojlund and Onana are currently on loan away from United for the campaign, and are increasingly expected to leave Old Trafford on a permanent basis in the summer.

United loaned Hojlund to Napoli with the deal also including an obligation to buy, and the club’s sporting director Giovanni Manna has confirmed that the striker will be signed on a permanent basis.

Manna stated: “There are no doubts. Rasmus Hojlund will stay here. We have an obligation to buy from Man Utd, if Napoli qualify for Champions League, but he is in our plans despite this condition.”

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Onana is currently on loan at Trabzonspor, but there is uncertainty over whether the Turkish club will sign the goalkeeper on a permanent basis.

Trabzonspor vice-president Zeyyat Kafkas provided an update on Onana’s future earlier this month. He told Gunebakis: “As the figure from Manchester United for the purchase of Andre Onana is in the range of €45-50m, our president has sincerely informed the community in line with Trabzonspor’s realities.

“I don’t think this information affected Onana at all. Because Onana’s thinking is that if it’s not England, he wants to continue at a club in Europe. His family thinks the same way. The president also wanted to explain Trabzonspor’s reality. However, if the conditions change, the situation changes.”

Zirkzee has found regular playing time hard to come by at United after Ruben Amorim took over as head coach in November 2024, and this has continued since Carrick was appointed as the club’s interim head coach.

Mount has featured regularly for United at various points this season, but has been absent from the last six Premier League fixtures due to injury.

Ugarte, on the other hand, has made only seven top-flight starts for United this campaign and his future remains unclear.

Gervonta Davis is reportedly targeting a ring return this summer, with a rematch against a former world champion at 140lbs looking like a genuine possibility.

The 31-year-old has not fought since his controversial draw with Lamont Roach, who felt aggrieved to not come away with a shock victory in March 2025.

Later that year, ‘Tank’ was reportedly in talks to enter an immediate rematch with Roach, only to instead pursue an exhibition bout with Jake Paul.

That opportunity, however, fell by the wayside after Davis was hit with a civil lawsuit, causing Paul to instead face Anthony Joshua in December.

It was then revealed at the beginning of this year that Davis had been issued an arrest warrant on account of charges relating to battery, false imprisonment and attempted kidnapping.

As a result, the hard-hitting southpaw was stripped of his WBA world lightweight title but became the sanctioning body’s ‘champion in recess’, meaning he could potentially be reinstated as the full champion at 135lbs.

However, the Ring Magazine’s Mike Coppinger has reported that Davis is exploring a rematch with Isaac Cruz, who he unanimously outpointed in 2021, at 140lbs.

“I am told that [Gervonta Davis] is in advanced talks right now to fight a rematch against Pitbull Cruz that would be at 140, rather than 135 like the first fight, this summer. I expect it to happen.”

Despite Davis claiming a unanimous decision victory, many believe that Cruz gave the Baltimore man one of his toughest tests as a professional, with Roach representing the only other man to take him the full 12-round distance.

As for him reportedly moving up to super-lightweight, where he scored an 11th-round finish over Mario Barrios in 2021, it opens up fights against the likes of Keyshawn Davis.

Olympic medallist Saina Nehwal has urged the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to exercise caution regarding proposed scoring changes, maintaining that the current 21-point system preserves the sport’s essential intensity and endurance.

The game’s governing body (BWF) has proposed switching to a 3×15 scoring format from the current 3×21 system, with a membership vote on the change scheduled at the BWF Annual General Meeting in Horsens, Denmark on April 25.

“Badminton has a rich tradition, and tournaments like the All England Open Badminton Championships and the BWF World Championships have always been special because of their intensity and endurance factor,” Saina, who joined the advisory board of India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.), told PTI in an interview.

“Any change in scoring or format should be carefully considered. The current 21-point system has worked well and players have adapted to it over many years.

“If changes are introduced, they should ensure that the quality of rallies and the competitive balance of the sport are not affected. At the end of the day, the focus should remain on fair competition and the spirit of the game.” 
According to the revamped BWF World Tour, the five Super 1000 tournaments, to be staged across Asia and Europe, will introduce a new format in singles, with 48 players competing in a group stage followed by knockouts.

Doubles events will feature 32-pair knockout draws, and each Super 1000 tournament will run for 11 days across two weekends.

Saina feels the BWF needs to prioritise player welfare, saying the packed international calendar leaves little room for recovery and can lead to injuries and burnout among elite shuttlers.

“Badminton is always a very tough sport both physically and mentally. The rallies are longer, the speed of the game is higher, and players are competing in tournaments almost every week.

“The Badminton World Federation has tried to structure the calendar, but from a player’s perspective, recovery time is extremely important. Injuries and fatigue can affect performance and also shorten careers.

“I feel the schedule should allow better recovery periods between major tournaments, and teams should have more support for sports science and rehabilitation.” 

 
Lakshya has ability and mindset, All England title is not far away 
Last week, Lakshya Sen finished runner-up at the All England Open after going down to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi in the men’s singles final, repeating his near-miss at the tournament after finishing second in 2022.

Praising Lakshya for his consistency on the big stage, Saina said: “First of all, reaching the final of All England Open Badminton Championships twice is a big achievement. It’s one of the most prestigious tournaments in badminton and the level there is always extremely high.

“Consistency at that stage shows that Lakshya is doing many things right. Sometimes in sport, the difference between winning and finishing runner-up is just a few points or moments of composure. If a player keeps reaching those stages, it usually means the title is not far away.

“So I would say it’s a very positive sign. It shows he has the ability and the mindset to compete with the best in the world,” added the 2015 All England runner-up.

The 35-year-old from Hyderabad is also impressed with the performance of young Indian shuttlers but said physical strength, match temperament and tactical awareness remains key to consistency.

“Consistency at the top level comes from fitness, discipline and mental toughness over many years. Players need to maintain their level across the entire season, not just in a few tournaments,” said the former world No. 1.

“When PV Sindhu and I were competing regularly, the focus was always on preparation, recovery and staying hungry to improve.

“For the current generation, the key is to keep improving their physical strength, match temperament and tactical awareness so they can perform consistently in the biggest tournaments.” 
Explaining her decision to associate with I.I.M.U.N, Saina, a two-time Commonwealth Games champion, said: “I’ve always believed that sports teaches values like discipline, leadership and resilience, which are also important in life.

“Being part of India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) is special because it gives young people a platform to think globally, develop leadership skills and express their ideas confidently.

“If my journey can inspire young students to believe in themselves and work hard toward their goals, I feel that would be a meaningful contribution.

It has been more than a decade since there was such a small difference between college basketball’s best two teams as Selection Sunday beckons.

Look at the metrics. Look at the gambling futures. Look at the evidence on our TV screens. It’s nearly impossible to say whether the Duke Blue Devils or the Michigan Wolverines are the favorite to win it all.

If you go by predictive metrics like KenPom, Duke ranks as roughly a half-point favorite over Michigan. If you go by results-based metrics like Wins Above Bubble, Michigan is a smidge ahead of Duke. If you go by online sportsbooks like Caesars, Duke is listed at +325 to cut down the nets on April 6 in Indianapolis at +325 — but Michigan sits at +325, too.

If you prefer to go by something absurd like on-court results, Duke edged Michigan 68-63 in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 21 in a game where neither team led by more than eight.

In essence, if this year’s tournament turns into nothing more than Duke and Michigan on an inexorable collision course from opposite sides of the bracket (to be unveiled at 6 p.m. ET Sunday), then we’re destined for an amazing three weeks.

The only way it might be greater is if we get a replay of the last NCAA Tournament with its top two teams virtually indistinguishable — because that was the last time a wholly unexpected squad stormed to the NCAA title.

That was way back in 2014, when NCAA Tournament committee members were still such troglodytes when it came to metrics that Louisville entered the tournament ranked as KenPom’s No. 1 overall team — yet received a No. 4 seed.

When the dust settled in Arlington, Texas, 18th-ranked and No. 7 seeded Connecticut claimed the championship while eighth-seeded Kentucky also made the Final Four. Some would argue that’s way more fun than having only No. 1 seeds in the Final Four.

What else will happen on Selection Sunday?

What else can be learned from the 2014 NCAA Tournament that might be applicable as we try to predict what will happen on Selection Sunday? Well, that was the year Wichita State raced through the regular season and the Missouri Valley Conference tournament at 34-0 and was rewarded with a No. 1 seed.

Now, the Shockers played a significantly tougher schedule than the 2025-26 Miami (Ohio) RedHawks — Tennessee, Alabama (on the road), BYU, Saint Louis and Tulsa were among their non-conference conquests — and the MVC was tougher than the current-day MAC.

But for all those who believe the NCAA Tournament committee shouldn’t bow at the feet of an undefeated mid-major, Wichita State’s season ended in the second round when John Calipari’s Kentucky squad rallied for a 78-76 win.

Speaking of the Miami RedHawks, their perfect season went poof Thursday in the MAC quarterfinals against a Massachusetts squad that finished with a 17-16 record. After that flaccid finish, which followed multiple 2-point escapes, there will be howling no matter how the committee treats the 31-1 RedHawks.

Do they deserve the worst at-large seed, which is usually a 12? Does the committee force them into the First Four with an 11 seed, which would inadvertently punish their opponent because Miami’s Millett Hall is just 40.4 miles from University of Dayton Arena?

Or does the committee decide Miami doesn’t deserve a bid at all because it played such a putrid schedule? According to the NET rankings, the RedHawks played zero Quad 1 games and went 2-0 versus Quad 2 foes. Auburn, widely expected to fall short of the 68-team tournament field, went 4-13 versus Quad 1s and 3-2 vs. Quad 2s. Indiana, in a similar spot, went 3-10 versus Quad 1s and 3-4 against Quad 2s.

The prediction here? Miami (Ohio) receives a No. 10 seed — and faces seventh-seeded Miami (Fla.) in the first round.

Duke, Michigan, Arizona and Florida receive the No. 1 seeds. Iowa State, UConn, Houston and Michigan State get the No. 2 seeds. Santa Clara claims an at-large berth and none of the power-conference bubble teams get in.

Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) have debunked a fake report circulating on social media claiming that captain Hardik Pandya is unhappy with the form of franchise great Rohit Sharma. The report further alleged that Hardik issued an ultimatum to Rohit ahead of IPL 2026, stating there would be “zero tolerance” if the former captain fails to deliver this season. Additionally, the viral post claimed the MI management itself is frustrated with Rohit’s IPL strike-rate and consistency over recent years.

‘Hardik Pandya has informed the management that there will be no tolerance this time if Rohit fails to deliver. The MI management is very frustrated with Rohit’s performances over the last 10-12 years, as he has often scored only around 200-300 runs per season and that too at a strike rate close to 120, despite being one of the highest-paid players in the squad,’ a social media user wrote on X.

However, MI quickly rubbished the claims with a savage response. ‘Kuch bhi (Anything),’ wrote MI, who last won the IPL in 2020, with a GIF of Hardik.

Kuch bhi! https://t.co/lEiFBgaEoh pic.twitter.com/SYw1im5Mfi

— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) March 13, 2026

Hardik had replaced Rohit as captain of MI ahead of IPL 2024, a move which led to heavy criticism from fans.

MI will be aiming to overcome their five-season title drought this year. Last year, they made it to the playoffs, losing to the Punjab Kings by five wickets in the Qualifier two at Ahmedabad. They will open their campaign at home against the Kolkata Knight Riders on March 29.

Mumbai Indians (MI) full squad for IPL 2026: AM Ghazanfar, Ashwani Kumar, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Mayank Markande (traded), Mitchell Santner, Naman Dhir, Raghu Sharma, Raj Angad Bawa, Robin Minz, Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton, Shardul Thakur (traded), Sherfane Rutherford (traded), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Verma, Trent Boult, Will Jacks, Danish Malewar (Rs 30 lakh), Quinton de Kock (INR 1 Cr), Atharva Ankolekar (Rs 30 lakh), Mayank Rawat (Rs 30 lakh), Mohammad Izhar (Rs 30 lakh).

(With IANS Inputs)