News Beat
Club launch investigation to find mole over leaked starting XI & modernise food and drink at Old Trafford
MANCHESTER UNITED have launched an internal investigation in an effort to discover how their starting XI leaked hours before last week’s derby.
SunSport obtained the correct starting XI, which seemed to irritate a number of people at the club.
This correspondent has been obtaining leaked teams or team news sporadically for ten years yet it seems to cause great offence these days.
A former United reporter even wrote about “unsavoury leaks”, which remains an in-joke among patch reporters.
That is doubtless down to social media becoming more tribal and more toxic, which has had a knock-on effect on United’s response.
It is a far cry from Jose Mourinho’s days. At the pre-match press conference for the 2018 FA Cup final, he asked me: “Before you ask me a question, can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“Do you know the team for tomorrow?”
“No.”
Later that year, Mourinho was asked whether Romelu Lukaku would be fit for Bournemouth away.
“Ask him,” he replied.
He looked in my direction.
“Ask Samuel.”
Mourinho never had a problem with journalists doing their job. He did have a problem with loose-lipped club employees.
PUNDITS’ PUNTS
For once, United pundits seem to be more unpopular than the journalists who cover the club.
United’s fabulous performance in the Manchester derby did not help the approval ratings for messrs Butt, Scholes, Keane, Neville et al. though their podcasts may have gained more downloads.
Although the good and great of United air their views regularly and publicly, some are becoming sensitive to certain views making it into the public domain.
One ex-United player was particularly critical of a current first-teamer earlier this season but did not appreciate it when it emerged that he felt the player should have been sold by the club years ago.
IN THE MIXER
Lisandro Martinez dominated the post-derby news agenda with his challenge to Butt and Scholes that they visit him at home to air their criticism.
As one United figure said, Martinez had two good games last Saturday: on the pitch and in the mixed zone.
AMORIM CALLED IT
Ruben Amorim once said United will not give him the time that Mikel Arteta was afforded to change fortunes at Arsenal.
Spaniard Arteta replaced Unai Emery as Arsenal manager in December 2019 and has helped transform the Gunners into regular title challengers.
Arteta won the 2020 FA Cup in his first season but it remains the only piece of silverware he has won since his appointment – and it took him three seasons to return the club to the Champions League.
United are 15 points behind the Gunners before travelling to the Emirates on Sunday in the Prem (16:30 GMT).
During his final months in charge, Amorim repeatedly referenced United’s 1-0 defeat by Arsenal on the opening day of the season as one his side’s “best performances”.
SOUS CHEF
One Portuguese staff member at United has survived the cull from Amorim’s sacking.
First team nutritionist Filipe Sousa, who joined United in the summer, is still at the club.
Amorim was followed out of United by assistant Carlos Fernandes, goalkeeping coach Jorge Vital, first team coach Adelio Candido, fitness coach Paulo Barreira and analyst Eduardo Rosalino.
Their fellow Portuguese, Acacio Valentim, was another summer arrival and remains United’s first team operations manager.
OBI AND GABRIEL
Darren Fletcher is ready to unleash Chido Obi alongside JJ Gabriel this week as United go all out to win their first FA Youth Cup in four years.
Obi, 18, and Gabriel, 15, have not started a competitive match together and U21s striker Obi has not played a competitive match under Fletcher.
It is understood Obi was drafted in to a behind-closed-doors friendly against Celtic at Carrington last weekend, with the U18s preparing for Friday night’s Youth Cup clash against Derby County at Old Trafford.
Obi represents a big attacking boost to Fletcher, who chose to return to the Under 18s rather than stay with the first team as part of Michael Carrick’s backroom staff.
Bendito Mantato, 17, is likely to make up the front three. Obi and Bendito Mantato were both rested for the U21s 3-2 win over Sporting on Tuesday night.
But Obi came on late to assist James Scanlon’s third goal of the evening. Gabriel scored at Old Trafford last month in United’s cup win against Peterborough.
BACK OF THE NET-WORK
United are seeking a new head of social media, a rewarding but unforgiving role as it seeks to appease its hundreds of millions of followers.
The club has 37.8 million followers on X, formerly Twitter, 85 million on Facebook, 65.5 million on Instagram and 31.2 million on TikTok.
Nick Speakman, who vacated the role last year, was popular with the younger staff members as he modernised United’s output online.
United were one of the latest Premier League clubs to join Twitter in 2013. It was not a coincidence that they launched their account two months after Sir Alex Ferguson retired.
Ferguson once advised his players to go to the library and read a book after midfielder Darron Gibson launched and promptly closed his account in 2011 following an immediate pile-on.
BEER WE GO
While United struggle to make headway in their plans for a new stadium, they are modernising Old Trafford in the meantime.
The club have installed self-service beer vending machines that have been present for the last few home games in some sections of the ground.
Some United fans got a text informing them of a 25 per cent discount if they got to the concourse more than an hour before kick-off.
Fans can get a self-service Madri or Guinness for £4.88. A new nachos cart was installed for last week’s Manchester derby.
